Moments Clear and Unclear
by Montreat11
Summary: All of life is a series of decisions; decisions that make us who we are and determine who we will be. Sometimes a memory, a conversation, even a relationship, can be all the difference in making a decision clear. 11th in Moments Series. Belle's perspective of 5A in Storybrooke, begins with their return to Storybrooke and ends with Belle returning to Rumple. R/R.
1. Starting With Nothing

The ground was shaking. It woke her from a deep sleep and made her eyes feel like they were glued shut, but she hardly noticed over the sound of her blood racing through her veins and the cool floor beneath her cheek. She was lying on the ground. No, not just a ground. Tile! Granny's? As she pushed herself up she saw the familiar tile of Granny's diner and the booths built into the wall and the tables that were all scattered across the room and she felt…oh!

She felt! Everything! Her back hurt. Every time she breathed she felt the muscles rebel against the motion. Her arms, every small twinge of motion made pain spike through them. Her chest, her stomach, even her legs! She felt as though she'd been hit by a train!

A thousand questions filled her head all at once. Where? Why? What? But "how" was probably the loudest. And for good reason.

Three seconds ago she had been walking into King Arthur's Castle! It had been bright and sunny! She'd just had a conversation with Robin! She felt fine! How on earth had she gotten back here feeling every muscle on her body scream and…in the middle of the night?!

Noise made her look around.

It wasn't just her. Everyone was here with her, grumbling and moaning on the ground as they awoke just as she had! It was as if they'd all just gone to sleep like that! And…something was pressing against her belly.

Her bell jar! It was lying by her side fogged but whole looking. Nothing was cracked or broken. What about the rose? It had been so delicate a few seconds ago, petals had already begun to fall! Nothing had happened to it had it?!

To her surprise, she didn't even have to say the words, to ask to see the rose, and the glass melted away to reveal-

She had no words. The rose wasn't just missing a few petals; it looked nearly dead!

Her eyes filled with tears as she looked around. She remembered a few petals falling off before they got to the castle but this?! She remembered talking to Robin and saving a favor for him, asking Regina to let her return to Storybrooke when only a few petals were missing. What had happened in the last few hours? How had Rumple gotten so bad so quickly?! And how was it possible she'd let it get this bad and not demanded she return to Storybrooke?!

She sat up and the door to Granny's opened to reveal…Walter? Sneezy, maybe. Her first instinct was to question what they were doing in Camelot, but then she looked at what was behind them…street lights. The lights of Storybrooke!

Main street!

That was what they'd felt?! They'd come home?! She felt like her head was spinning.

"What are you guy's doing here?" Sneezy asked as everyone slowly got to their feet. Her body cried out in rebellion at her every flinch, but she managed not to cry or utter so much as a groan. What were they doing here? That was an excellent question!

"What happened?" Mary Margaret asked as she stood up. She and David had already looked over little Neal and now appeared nearly as confused as she was. They all did. So it wasn't just her then! Encouraging, but not enough to make her happy.

"We're back," David breathed at her side looking at the diner as though he'd never seen it before.

"Bloody hell," Killian added in disbelief.

"This doesn't make any sense…we were just walking into Camelot," Regina pointed out glancing skeptically around the diner as though it was a trick of some kind. If it was, the level of detail was stunning!

"What are we wearing?" Leroy questioned across the room looking at his clothes. What were they wearing? What was she wearing?! She looked down at herself to find that she was in a long green dress that certainly hadn't been what she'd gone into the castle wearing! But she wasn't the only one. They were all in odd-looking clothes, even for the Enchanted Forest! Though not necessarily for Camelot if what she'd seen of the people at the castle was true. Was it?

"Sneezy what happened, how long were we gone?" Leroy asked.

"Six weeks," he answered.

Six weeks! Six weeks?! They'd been gone for six weeks! She assumed they'd be missing a few hours but…six weeks?! She glanced down at her foggy bell jar. No wonder it was this bad. Why hadn't she been home a month ago? She honestly didn't know.

Six weeks...she didn't know anything.

"What?!" Regina whispered in shock.

"Our memories…they're gone," David said stating the obvious.

"Again," Mary Margaret whispered sadly next to him.

Obviously, their memories were gone, obviously from their clothing and her rose time had gone on! And they couldn't remember any of it! Again!

 _"You all really need to start keeping diaries for when this stuff happens because it is entirely too often!"_ the voice of Neal whispered in her head. It was meant to be funny, but it wasn't. It couldn't be at a time like this. If anything it was shocking. Neal had been quiet for so long! Now he was there again?!

"Where's Emma?" Killian whispered behind her. She looked around the room, took stalk of everyone, counting people to make sure they'd all come back. Yes, she could even still see Roland's sleeping form behind the counter! Everyone they'd left with was here. But the person they'd gone to get was mysteriously absent. What had happened in six weeks? What happened while they were in Camelot? Was Emma-

"Relax," she spun around at the vaguely familiar breathy voice behind her. "I'm right here."

Oh, she could have cried at the terrible sight that met her eyes. She had no words for it or any of this.

Emma…she was there, paler than she recalled, tinier in a way but somehow also looming larger than she'd ever known her to be. That could be the black clothes she was wearing head to toe, and the way her normally cascading and free hair was suddenly bound together at the back of her head looking more white than blonde. But perhaps the most striking thing was her eyes. The last time she'd seen Emma was just a few hours ago-weeks ago? It had been outside of Granny's when she'd returned. She'd been dressed in gray, her face had been taunt with stress and confusion, but her eyes had been clear. They'd been full of fear, but they were clear. Now they resembled steel. Cold, colorless…unfeeling. She shivered when her eyes roamed over the group and finally over her.

"Mom?" Henry questioned somewhere behind her. "What happened to you?"

Her instinct was the reach out and silence him, to stand between Henry and this…version of Emma she didn't know or trust. But her feet stayed planted right where she was. She'd never felt so frozen with fear in all her life and she'd married a Dark One!

"Isn't it obvious?" Emma questioned before taking slow and deliberate steps into the diner. She even moved differently. And her voice, her tone…she'd never heard her sound so precise and terrifying all at once. "You went to Camelot to get the Darkness out of me," she explained stepping up to her mother. She watched as Emma's hand glided with an unnatural grace through the air and finally touched Mary Margaret's cheek. The woman jumped, but she held her ground as she looked at her daughter.

"Then you failed," Emma hissed in her face.

Sneezy sneezed, and everyone jumped at his poor timing. Everyone but Emma, who simply looked over at the dwarf. He didn't look back. He wiped his nose on his sleeve then cast his eyes to the ground avoiding her gaze like a child playing peek-a-boo, like if he couldn't see her, then maybe she wouldn't see him. But it didn't work. Emma saw him. Clearly. And she didn't look happy.

"What the hell are you supposed to be?" Emma demanded of the dwarf, looking him over like he was a mouse she was ready to devour. Sneezy looked up and met her gaze, and she knew right away it was the wrong thing to do. Emma moved. She walked over to the dwarf without hesitation. Sneezy's nose began to twitch even through his wide, scared eyes but the moment he opened his mouth and sneezed he was silenced.

Emma threw her hand up, and the dwarf turned to stone before her eyes. Stone! And Emma was responsible!

"There's no Savior in this town anymore," Emma stated as she looked over her work. Was it…was that admiration on her face? She wished more than anything it was guilt or sadness. That would mean there was still a chance they could help her! They couldn't do anything if she was like this.

She blanched at the sight of it, the cruelness of it. But no one said anything. The room was eerily quiet with the exception of the weather outside. Lightening flashed and thunder rolled ominously. She never really liked storms, but this one felt unnatural and electric in an odd way and she knew, without a doubt, that storm was not a product of the atmosphere. It was Emma.

Finally, someone moved. Regina. She stepped forward and stood between her and Emma. "Emma stop, that's enough," she said, but her tone was far more begging and pleading than correcting and chastising as she'd so often heard her be toward her. The Evil Queen was scared. That didn't bode well for the rest of them.

"Or what?" Emma questioned looking her over.

"Or I'll do exactly what you asked me to," Regina threatened. She reached for something at her side only…there was nothing by her side. There was just a slim, form-fitting red dress! What was she reaching for? What was she trying to get? Was it in the jacket she'd been wearing a moment ago-six weeks ago?! Where were their clothes, why was she sore, what was happening?

"Looking for this?" Emma questioned. It appeared out of thin air, the dagger she was all too familiar with was suddenly held before Regina's face. The name that was inscribed upon it was "Emma Swan". She hadn't seen it since they'd left the diner before setting out to find Emma. The name on the dagger had seemed odd then, and now it downright terrified her. Maybe because now Emma lived up to the inscription.

"Nobody's gonna touch this dagger but me," Emma clarified before moving around Regina and placing herself between Regina and Killian. "And now…for what you all did to me…you're about to be punished."

Punished? For what they'd done? She didn't even know what they'd done? What had Henry and Roland or even little Neal done to deserve all this? What had she done? Were they even who she was talking to? So far nearly every comment had been directed to Regina or her parents. Emma had barely laid eyes on her or Robin or even Killian for that matter! The last thing she remembered about Camelot was wanting to leave and get back to Rumple! Was that her crime? Had she not cared enough while she was there and cared for Rumple too much? What happened in Camelot?!

"Emma," Killian breathed, forcing Emma to turn and look at him. She hoped for a moment. If anyone would be able to get through to her, it should be Killian. She prayed he'd ask the right question, say the right thing!

"Why are you doing this?" was what came out of his mouth and she, just like the rest of the room held her breath as they watched the exchange, hoping and fearing exactly what she'd say.

She took her time, watched Killian for what felt like minutes though she was sure it had only been a few seconds. Emma would tell them what was going on. Emma would ask them to help; she'd never put anyone in danger, guilty or innocent.

But looking at Emma as she'd appeared when she first walked into the room…this clearly wasn't the Emma she knew. Was there enough of her left, somewhere perhaps, just enough that she would spare them and tell them the truth?

"Because…I am the Dark One," she finally declared without emotion.

Only seconds later she disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, a trick she'd seen Rumple do before but never Emma. Those who were left behind were helpless to do anything but stare at each other. There was so much to be said, so many questions to be asked, so many words that they needed. But the most important thing screamed so loudly at all of them in Emma's absence no one wanted to be heard over it.

They didn't know what happened over the last six weeks while they'd been in Camelot but they all knew one thing.

They'd gone to get the Darkness out of Emma before it was too late.

They'd failed.

And now it was too late.

* * *

 **Hi! For those of you that are just checking out this fiction, welcome! For those of you who are a fan of the Moments Series, welcome back! I hope you'll enjoy this fiction. It's the 11th in the Moments Series, a series that is an attempt at an accurate portrayal of Belle's perspective during the Once Upon a Time series. This fiction features everything that happened in Storybrooke from the moment that everyone returned from Camelot in "The Dark Swan" up to the moment that Belle returned to Rumple in "Swan Song".**

 **If you enjoy this fiction, please review! I always enjoy those wonderful gems waiting for me in my inbox, and I love writing back to thank you personally for reading! It helps me know that I'm doing a decent job! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	2. Clues to a Mystery

No one had anything to say in the wake of Emma's disappearance. At least no one had anything important or useful to say. They all stared at one another in absolute confusion for a few moments before Killian breathed "Bloody hell…" and a small groggy voice echoed "Papa!" through the diner.

"Roland?" Robin questioned looking around the chaotic and dark diner. It seemed to break the spell of still quiet that had settled over them. "Roland?!"

"There!" she pointed out finally moving from her spot and instantly regretting it as her body flared with pain. She winced as she rubbed her shoulder. What was wrong with her?! "I saw him behind the counter."

Robin quickly darted away and ducked down behind the counter. Regina followed and when Robin stood up again he held the small boy in his arms. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

Roland shook his head. "No. Why is it nighttime and..." his eyes widened as he looked out one of the windows. She followed his gaze expecting to find horror or terror, but it was just a streetlight. "Papa, why are we here again?"

"I wish I knew son. I wish I knew…"

"Henry…Henry are you alright?" Regina questioned, suddenly looking past her. She turned and found Henry still staring at the door Emma had come in as if willing her to come back.

"Sh-she's the Dark One. What happened to her?"

"Henry I want you to listen to me," Regina cooed quickly coming over and taking his hands. "The person you just saw isn't Emma, it's not your mother. And I promise you we are going to get her back!"

"That's what we were supposed to do when we went to Camelot! That's why we went!"

"And clearly something went wrong," Regina pointed out. "Emma may believe that we failed, but Henry, believe me, you only fail when you give up and stop trying. No one in this room is going to stop trying. Here or there, nothing has changed, we're going to help Emma. All of us."

It was a rousing speech, truly it was. Or it would have been if this was weeks ago. Seeing Emma like that…it had been a little too disheartening. And seeing Sneezy, still standing there, completely encased in stone…it was more than disheartening. It was terrifying.

"Other than the obvious…is everyone alright?" Regina questioned looking around the room. "Anyone hurt? Anything different?"

"Besides our clothes?"

"Besides Emma?"

"I did say other than the obvious! Focus. What do we know?"

Suddenly light burst into the diner and she shrank back in confusion then groaned in pain and maybe even a little fear. But it was nothing. Granny had simply turned the lights on and now she could see just how pale and terrified everyone looked. Only Regina seemed to be thinking coherently. Regina and Granny of course who turned the lights off and then on again before moving back to the counter and plugging in some appliances. "Electricity's back…so is the water, fryers look good...they were completely destory a few hours ago," she concluded finding a faucet she didn't even know about and also turning it on.

"I think you mean weeks ago," Mary Margaret corrected.

"Greasy food aside, that tells us what we're dealing with," Regina muttered.

"Curse," she concluded for herself and for the sake of the others who clearly had no idea what she was talking about.

"How do you know?" Mary Margaret questioned suspiciously.

"A portal wouldn't have cared how it delivered us back to Storybrooke," she answered for Regina. Mary Margaret didn't need the stress-fueled ramblings of Regina to make things worse. "That's why the fryers broke down on our way there in the first place. A portal wouldn't have cared, but a curse would have. It would have been designed to drop us right back into Storybrooke just the way things were before."

Mary Margaret didn't look anymore settled than she had before. She couldn't entirely blame her. Aside from Emma turning one of her friends into a statue she'd just confirmed for her that her daughter had created a curse, the worst kind of Dark Magic imaginable. It was a hard pill to swallow and-

"I thought you said the diner would be fine in that portal!" Granny suddenly barked at Regina! When she turned to face her, she was red in the face at her declaration and staring at Regina.

"I lied," Regina answered simply. "And it doesn't matter now because lucky you-your precious diner is perfect again. We're all fine."

"But we shouldn't be…" Mary Margaret muttered with wide glassy eyes. "David…the curse that takes people here…you need a heart to make it work! If Emma used that curse to bring us here that means she-"

"Let's not jump to conclusions," Regina inserted quickly. "We don't know anything yet. Focus first, lose your heads later. Anything else missing?"

"Besides skin, blood, and bones…" Doc muttered examining Sneezy sadly.

She had no words for the dwarf. There was nothing she could think of to say or do, nothing she could think of that would help. No, that wasn't true. She could think of one word, one thing that might help. Rumpelstiltskin. He wasn't the Dark One anymore, but there was magic in his shop that didn't require him to be the Dark One. Sneezy was stone, maybe if she went back she could find something to turn him back?

"I'm still wearing this terrible little bracelet of yours. Oh! But apparently I have my voice back!" Zelena piped up from where she was, suddenly beaming as she pressed her hand to her throat. She'd nearly forgotten that Regina had taken her voice away for obvious reasons before they'd left. And now that it was back she wished it wasn't. Zelena was hardly humble. "Oh it's so lovely, light, and feminine! Oh I've missed you my beautiful little-"

Suddenly Zelena was gone. Behind her, there was a snap of fingers and Zelena disappeared in a plume of smoke just as Emma had. For a moment she felt her jaw drop and her heart race. What had Emma done? Where they next? Was she really just going to start picking people off one by-

"That was enough of her," Regina muttered. When she looked over her hand was already in the air as though she'd been the one to snap her fingers. Not everything had a dark root then. She was just on edge.

"Where did you send her?" Mary Margaret asked as Neal began to fuss in her arms.

"Back to the hospital. They'll handle her there and at least I won't have to."

"Love…maybe it's not what's missing that we should be concerned with," Killian called, his gaze fixated on something that was beyond the little kitchen window.

She didn't bother to wait for an invitation, she shouldered her rose and stepped into the back with Regina even with her body screaming at her to stop moving. There were two obvious things to note right away. The first and perhaps most glaring was that the diner was put back together without any problem. The wood and the hallway that took them to the Bed and Breakfast that had been left behind when they'd gone to Camelot was knit back together so seamlessly she couldn't even tell where the gaping hole had been.

But the second, less obvious but somehow more daunting sight that met her eyes was something different entirely.

"Books?!" she exclaimed.

"Lots of them," Regina echoed looking it over at her side. She suspected that "lots of them" was a bit of an exaggeration, considering she'd rarely ever traveled with less than a dozen books but there they sat, no more and less than ten books sat stacked in two small piles by the bathroom, looking oddly neat in the midst of the chaos that the curse had brought them in. It was as if Santa Claus himself had left them there as a present on Christmas. And beside that…

"It's more than that," she pointed out stepping up to the wall and examining the other piles behind the books.

"Our clothes!" Mary Margaret blanched as she joined them. Their clothes, Emma's baby blanket, and the Apprentice's wand, even the black bag Regina had carried everything in. It was everything that they had gone with and more. It was remarkable, she just wished she could really wrap her head around it! Regina knelt next to her as she began distributing the neatly folded piles of clothing to their owners, setting her own aside. Skirt, shirt, sweater, shoes…it was all these.

"These are basic!" Regina blanched looking a few of the books over. "You have more complicated stuff in the library."

She glanced over at the book she was examining and read a couple of paragraphs. She was right. She could have repeated all of what she read without the book. And the rest of them? She pulled the second stack apart one by one. Basic. Average. Introductory. But…

"This one's not," she commented holding it in her arms closer. Regina reached for it and she felt herself flinch when her hands got too close to skin. "Don't! Don't come any closer, I don't need your help," she spat pushing herself up off the floor and backing away from the evil queen, her body rejected the motion but her soul still didn't feel far enough away.

"I was just trying to help," Regina commented.

"Why should I trust you?" she questioned automatically. It was foolish she knew it was. Regina was just as confused as she was and under the eyes of not just Robin Hood but her son she wasn't likely to hurt her like before…but she'd been burned too many times to trust people like she once had.

"Okay…what's going on between the two of you," David questioned looking between the pair of them. "You've been acting odd all day!"

"Weeks," Doc muttered.

What was going on between them? So much! Not the least of which was the fact that Regina had betrayed her the way she had! The truth was it wasn't just that Regina had taken her heart, it was how she acted about it, how she was acting about it now, as if they were still friends. There was a time that she thought she could never trust Regina because of what she'd done to her after she'd left Rumple. But she had. Over time she'd come to not just tolerate her but trust her and even respect her for the changes she'd made in her life. And then she'd thrown it all away and now acted as though nothing had happened.

She stared at her, she waited for her to show her she was wrong, to confess to the others what she'd done. But instead Regina just glared back at her from her spot on the floor. Her gaze was like fire, not just begging but fearsome and threatening. She wasn't going to confess what she'd done. And she wasn't going to let her do it. What would happen if she told? That was something that terrified her. But she couldn't stand the thought of being here in this room with the truth stretching between them.

"I'm sorry, I have to go," she whispered reaching up and wiping tears from the rim of her eyes.

"Go? Go where?!" Mary Margaret shrieked.

"I have to check on Rumple," was the first thing that popped out of her mouth.

People argued. She heard them make comments and felt hands try to catch her but she ignored them and the pain radiating over her body. Instead, she retrieved her clothes and the bell jar then ran away from the diner.

* * *

 **Because when you erase a lot of time suddenly a lot of stuff comes back to haunt you. For instance, Belle and Regina never kissed and made up, all those conversations Belle and Henry had are gone, and let's not forget that all the knowledge they had is also unreachable. Sigh...essentially it means the storyline repeats itself. Or does it?**

 **Thank you all so much, Fox24, Skitzoeinhoven, NejiHina100, Grace5231973, TwistedMidnight, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Teresa Martin, Carlyle23, Rumbellefan, Ladybugsmomma, and my unnamed guest, I'm so thrilled to have so many of you reading MC &U with me and of course, I'm so happy that you've been looking forward to this! Tenth in the series (not counting ML), can you believe it! I feel like it's a milestone and we need a cake or something. Shame they haven't invented virtual cake yet, but fortunately, I think regular cake tastes better. Go out and have yourself some cake or pie or ice cream! YAY! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	3. Preparations for the Worst

She was halfway to the shop when she had to stop along the darkened streets of Storybrooke and breathe. Though considering the pain in her back, that wasn't really safe either.

What was she doing? Why did she run away as she had?

Betrayal.

That was the only blaring answer that she could come up with, but somehow even that felt wrong. It wasn't just Regina's betrayal; it was every betrayal that she'd suffered the last few weeks-months apparently. First Rumple, then Regina…now Emma. Was there any point of trusting anyone anymore? She'd always believed that if she were a good person, then the world would reward her by giving her good back. She wanted to believe in that kind of world! But how could she when this kept happening? When she kept being taken advantage of? When she kept giving her all with no return?! How was she supposed to go on when she kept waking up without a memory of how she'd gotten to where she was?

 _"Hey! Breathe and focus!"_

Neal's voice. She sighed as she felt a feeling of relief rocket through her. He was back in her head! And that thought alone threatened to bring tears to her eyes again. Happy ones. After he'd died, after Rumple was gone, she'd missed him and relied on him, on his voice and the reassurance that came with feeling like he was still close to her. He'd gone away for a while, she couldn't pinpoint when, but she knew that it was after Will had shown up in her life. Eventually, she'd come to accept that had been a sign that the relationship probably hadn't been as healthy as she thought it had been. Knowing that Will was off in Wonderland now trying to figure out what was happening with Anastasia, and she was here, without memories, it was true, but with Neal's voice in her head and his spirit in her heart…it gave her peace that she hadn't felt for a long time.

It was close to happiness, memories or not. Close to, but not completely.

She picked her bell jar up to eye level and this time wasn't shocked to find it had evaporated without a word from her.

The rose looked awful. Wilted. Drained. Nearly dead. Yes, it was alive, but only just barely. Neal was right. She needed to breathe. She needed to get back to Rumple. What to do about Regina, about her missing memories, about Emma, and what would happen when Rumple woke up was all to be confronted later, but for now, she needed to be by his side. Six weeks…she'd neglected him for long enough.

"Neal give me strength…" she whispered to the sky, then pushed herself off the wall she'd fallen against to rest and walked the rest of the way to the shop.

She didn't know what she expected to see when she walked into the shop. Neglect maybe? Cobwebs? A small hint of hope that something, anything, had changed in the rumored six weeks they'd been gone!

Instead, what greeted her was an unlocked door, a clean shop, and a woman in blue talking to Mother Superior on a phone behind the counter. Her jaw dropped the moment she saw her, and she quickly muttered "I'll call you back" into the receiver before looking her over. "You're back! The flash of light was you then! I called Mother Superior right away! What are you wearing?"

She opened her mouth, but then shook it and took quick steps to the back. She knew this woman. She and Killian had run into her when they'd searched the convent a few weeks ago. Months ago? She was the one they'd sent to investigate thinking she was a sacrifice. What was her name? Esther? Alyssa? Astrid! That was her name. But why she was here…that worried her. She walked straight into the back room and was met with another unexpected sight.

Nothing.

True the dusting was done, the shop was just as organized as she'd left it, the books were in order…but Rumple was also the same. She'd figured something to have happened since they'd gone, especially if they'd been gone six weeks! But nothing had. He was still there, wearing the same suit, the blankets showed no signs of movement, his hair was even brushed back off his forehead as she'd done just before they'd left. He didn't look any better or any worse. But if her rose was any indication then something had changed, and it was for worse.

She took a seat in the chair that was sitting by his bedside, the chair that she'd been using and took up the vigil that she'd had before, then reached out and touched his chest. It was the same rhythm of his heart, the same pace of breathing. The skin on both his cheek and his forehead were cool, perhaps slightly oily, but it wasn't clammy or feverish. Maybe the rose was wrong. Maybe Sneezy and Walter were wrong. Maybe it only had been a day they'd been gone.

"He hasn't moved."

She glanced over and found the woman in blue with her arms crossed over her chest, leaning against the door frame to the back room. "He's been like that for the last six weeks, ever since you left. Physically there's nothing wrong with him-"

"But?" she assumed quickly, noting the condition of "physically" that had been applied. Was it his head or his soul? She had her suspicions…

"But…when we check him over with magic it's like…it's like there's a void in his soul that we can't identify. It could be what is keeping him from waking up." A void in his soul. The place that the Dark One had once been.

She thought of her rose, how strong it had looked in the beginning and how weak and wilted it had become when her back had been turned…no! It was longer than when her back was turned! Six weeks! The dwarves weren't wrong, she wasn't mistaken, the nun had said that same dreaded number! This hadn't happened over night! It was slow! Over the course of six weeks! Yes, she'd gone with them but when she left she'd thought she'd be right back the next day! Two days at the most! What had taken so long?! What was the excuse since they'd failed?! And Rumple…

He'd fought. He must have been fighting before she'd gone for the rose to have looked that healthy. Had she been his anchor? A life preserver perhaps? Had her presence helped him cling to life against the darkened surface of the soulless void? With her gone…was she the reason he'd deteriorated so badly?

She swallowed back tears and leaned forward to place her forehead over his own. "I'm back," she whispered, setting her jar aside and running fingers through his hair. "I'm here now, can you hear my voice? Can you open your eyes? Come back to me!"

But nothing happened. His eyes remained closed, his heart remained steady, his breathing predictable. She sniffled and pulled away. "Can you even hear me?"

"I believe he can," the woman in blue commented from the doorway. "If it's true love, like you said then…I believe he can hear you and knows your back." She hoped that was true. She hoped he knew. She hoped that meant he could hear her.

"You can go if you want," the woman stated. "You look exhausted. If you want to shower and get a good night sleep then you don't have to worry, he'll be safe here."

"How long have you been here?"

"Me? Only a few hours. My shift started at five, but everyone's been taking turns watching him since you left. Blue said you wouldn't want him to be alone." She felt a tense muscle she hadn't known had been sitting in her belly uncoil at her words. She'd hoped that Mother Superior would remember that and watch over him. Clearly, she had. "Anyway, my shift will be over at nine tomorrow morning and instead of having another fairy come over you could take it from there. But it would give you the night to sleep and shower and…what _are_ you wearing?! Where did you all go?"

She sniffled and got her emotions in check before she finally glanced at herself and nodded. Perhaps taking the night wouldn't be such a bad idea. Rumple knew she was here now. She could clean herself up and put on some clothes. She could try to sleep though she suspected that might be useless. At the very least she could rest her body, try to get this terrible feeling that she had all over gone.

"Camelot," she finally answered. "We went to Camelot and…a good night's sleep sounds like a great idea."

"Where you successful?" Astrid asked eagerly. "Did all of you get back alright? Emma, Regina, Mary Margaret…Leroy?"

She didn't know quite how to answer those questions. Everyone was back. But were they okay? No. How could they be?! And was everyone alive?! So it appeared. But Mary Margaret had a good point! The kind of curse needed in order to bring them back would have required a sacrifice. Someone dearly loved. So how was it that none of them were dead? Was it like David? Walking around with half a heart? If Emma had cast it then it would have been either Henry or Killian. Had Emma done something to them?

"Everyone we went with came back," she finally settled on. "But Emma…when you get back to the convent, you should warn Mother Superior. We weren't able to save her. And without a Savior in Storybrooke…" she glanced at Rumple and pushed his hair back one more time again. His plots had always been foiled because of Emma. Now what? "Perhaps it's time to plan for the worst."

* * *

 **I know I'm focusing on Belle's physical pain a lot in these chapters, but it was a conscious decision. I know in my workout routine there is one day in particular, leg day, that leaves me sore and in pain for days (I over do it, yeah I know). At it's peak, which is where Belle is now according to my math, I can hardly move without some reminder of it all, but I know how it happened, where the pain comes from. I cannot imagine being Belle, having my memories completely wiped away but still having that pain and no knowledge of how or why it happened. Think of how you get a bruise and can't remember where it came from, then imagine that bruise all over your body and you can't remember where it came from. I imagine it's unsettling and makes the pain all that much worse. But, some good things! Obviously, Neal is back for MC &U. And oh look Astrid! That's exciting! Just remember she doesn't know Astrid as Nova and therefore hasn't made a connection to Leroy. As far as she knows, Astrid is just that nun that she met that one time. **

**Thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, Teresa Martin, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Carlyle23, and Ladybugsmomma. I hope you like this chapter, the return of Astrid and the Rumple watch, which Merlin gave to us in MT but Belle can't remember. The next chapter is...interesting. I'm bringing back a character, and giving Belle a friend in this fiction that she needs, I won't say they are BFF's right away, but it's an intro to bring her back. I'm a little nervous, though. I already know that this friend has done something some of you might think is very "unfriend-like" right from the get-go. Just...read it, keep an open mind, and let me explain. Aside from this one thing, I think you'll actually enjoy the chapter and their relationship. Just maybe not right away. And if it's any consolation, the chapter after that one, Neal's really back. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	4. Right Where She Left It And Not

"Hey…if you can hear me, I'm just going to lie down for the night. But I'll be back by morning and we'll figure it out. Okay?"

It was odd how she still got disappointed when he didn't respond. She knew that he couldn't, that he wasn't going to open his eyes on command but…she supposed somewhere deep down she'd hoped that they'd have the fairy tale they never had in at least one way. That she'd tell him to open his eyes and somewhere inside his soul would recognize her own and he'd wake up. He'd take a breath. Their eyes would meet. And…

Her heart raced at the thought. She had no idea what they'd do if he actually woke up. It was odd the contradiction that she was living. She wanted him to be alright, she wanted him to be healed, and have the promise that he wasn't going to die when she turned her back, but at the same time if he stayed perfectly healthy, alive, and asleep…that would be just fine with her.

"I'll uh…I'll be back tomorrow morning. At nine, before you go," she informed Astrid.

The nun nodded. "Should I call you at home? If something should change, that is."

She shook her head. She knew that nothing was going to happen. The one settling piece of information that her rose gave her was that she'd been away for six weeks apparently and he'd hung on for that long. If he was going to go, it wouldn't be tonight. The rose might be dying, but it still had more life left in it than for one night.

But the house…

"No, it's too far. I'll stay in town tonight. My cell phone…" Where was the last place she'd had her cell phone? She remembered using it early today-yesterday…weeks ago! Henry had called her in this shop. She'd had it on her when she left and put it in her bag like always then gone to…

Car!

Will had found the car for her and she'd placed her bag in it. The last time she'd seen it, she'd parked it just down the street from Mary Margaret's.

Six weeks…

Surely it was out of power by now.

She shook her head at the stray thought. She could charge it. It wasn't as if she was in the forests of Camelot anymore. "I'll get my cell phone and keep it with me," she finally concluded gathering her jar and clothes. "I'll see you in the morning…" she muttered as she moved around the woman and moved toward the door.

"Don't forget this!" Astrid called out after her. When she turned she saw the book that she'd fought Regina over in her hands. Had she really walked out with it? She'd barely noticed.

"Keep it here, I'll look into it tomorrow."

Astrid listened, thankfully, and finally she was out the door. She couldn't go home, she couldn't sleep in the shop…that just left the apartment. It took her all of five minutes to walk down the street to collect her car and miraculously her bag was still intact, sitting out in the open in the front seat. Figured. Even in his coma like state people were still afraid of him and probably her by proxy. But as she looked her bag over, exactly the same way that she'd left it, she couldn't dislike that tonight.

Down the street or not she moved the car down to the library and parked it just outside the shop in its usual spot. She didn't turn the library lights on, just sighed as she locked the door behind her and carried her stuff inside. She moved up to the apartment, took out her keys, and opened the apartment door. Once she was inside and the door was locked she let herself fall back against it and breathe as her eyes closed and took in the peace of, well…peace! If only every-

"Whoa!"

She ducked out of the way just in time as the floor beside her creaked and shifted and then something whistled through the air before slamming against the door near to the place her head had just been. Her rose, her bag, and clothes she lost them as she struggled in the dark to find something, any kind of weapon, but she tripped over her own furniture. Why wasn't it where she remembered?

"Get out! Get out of my apartment!" a familiar voice screamed as she rolled out of the way just in time to save her skull.

"Ra-Rapunzel? Rapunzel! Rapunzel, stop it's me! It's Belle! It's me!"

"Belle?!" the woman shrieked as she rolled to avoid another blow to her head and felt something crash into her chest instead. She grasped at the spot just under her collar bone and fought for breath as light filled the room and nearly blinded her.

"Oh my…Belle!" Rapunzel exclaimed throwing something aside and reaching down to help her up. She glanced over and saw that what she'd run into was her coffee table, only it wasn't in the place that she remembered it and what Rapunzel had tossed onto the misplaced couch, the thing she'd used as a weapon…

"Is that a…skillet?!" she blanched.

Rapunzel took a deep breath herself and reached for it as she shrugged. "Cast iron frying pan," she nodded twisting the handled so that it spun in her hand like it was a sword or a dagger instead of a kitchen supply. "It worked…though maybe a little too well. What are you doing here? When did you get back?!"

She shook her head and looked around at her once familiar apartment that looked nothing like she remembered. "I could ask you the same question," she said glancing over at the girl she felt like she'd only just hired a month ago. More than a month ago now. Now it would be nearly three!

"Oh that," she breathed looking around almost nervous. "Well…when you first offered me the job you said that the apartment came with it and I know at first I wasn't ready but when you and the others disappeared and didn't come back…I figured…"

"You'd move in?"

Rapunzel looked at her like she was frightened for a moment. "Are you upset? I can always leave if you want me to! I just figured since I started working here full time and dating this guy and…well…you have a house across town-"

"It's fine!" she choked out feeling the exact opposite. It was, she supposed, fine that Rapunzel had moved in and taken over her job but…where was she supposed to go now? Home? Somehow that just didn't feel right. And her rose…her rose!

She glanced around for the things she'd dropped when Rapunzel had first attacked. There! By the door with her clothes and bag. She ran forward and scooped the jar up. The frosted glass cleared as she examined it but found no damage besides the wilting rose. It survived just as it had the portal and the curse she supposed. She gave a sigh of relief and hugged it to her chest.

"Are you okay? What's that?" Rapunzel asked walking over and scooping a few items that had fallen out of her open bag back in.

What was this? Did it really matter to Rapunzel? It wasn't like she had known Rumpelstiltskin. Ever really! In the Enchanted Forest he'd been with Zelena and while she'd known her here she'd never really been with Rumple, not as she once had at least. She liked Rapunzel, she thought of her as a friend, but at the thought of trying to explain it all she felt like the room was spinning and it wasn't just the glass on her bell jar that was foggy.

When was the last time she'd slept?

She didn't know. It could have been last night, it could have been last week…

"I'll explain later," she settled on.

"Are you alright? You seem…lost. And…what are you wearing?! Where did you go? The whole town's been talking about it!"

She shook her head and felt like the world was swimming again. Her body! Whatever it was that had happened to her, nearly dodging the frying pan hadn't helped her aches and pains. She really needed to get some rest. "Um…I don't want to be rude to you but…I'm just really tired right now and all those conversations are really long stories. Can we talk later? Tomorrow maybe?"

Rapunzel crossed her arms over her chest and looked her over with concern but nodded. "Are you sure you're okay? Maybe we should just put you on the couch for the night. Or...we could change the sheets, I'll sleep on the couch!"

She shook her head. "It's fine, I'll just…I'll just stay with Granny tonight."

"Granny's has been condemned. The diners been gone, the rest of the structure isn't safe. It's-"

"The diner came back with us," she muttered reaching up and rubbing her eyes. Had she been this tired when she'd first come in? It must have been the adrenaline wearing off. She couldn't think of any other reason she'd suddenly be this sleepy. "It's perfectly fine now, looking at it you'd never know it was split in two."

"Well, the Lost Boys will be happy. Archie moved them into his place but they miss Granny and…he doesn't really handle them well. Not like her. His level of control has been waning for days. He's just always wanting to talk things out and those boys...I think they need more than talking-"

"Archie? He's watching the Lost Boys?"

"At night mostly," Rapunzel answered. "I look out for them throughout the day, we've been encouraging the older ones to get jobs, and the younger ones are enrolled in school, but that won't actually start until September. The dwarves have been handling the police business, and Archie and I have been running the town as best we can, it's not easy, but it's been nice, good for me I think to be part of all this. And Archie says he's an old pro," she smirked. "'It's not the first time half the town has gone missing!' he said," she mimicked in a voice and tone that was actually frighteningly accurate for Archie.

No, it wouldn't have been the first time Archie had done all that, or the dwarves for that matter. She knew because last time she'd been there, right by his side. She'd been the one to look after the library and the town, to get the dwarves for security, to fix problems…to stay in this apartment. She'd been gone six weeks. It felt like a few hours but it was six weeks. And somehow, in only six weeks, Rapunzel had become her. So where did that leave her?

Granny's Bed and Breakfast apparently.

"I'm uh…I'm going to go to Granny's now. I'll…I-I'll come talk to you tomorrow morning, maybe meet you at the shop?"

"I can bring breakfast, or maybe lunch would be better. I'm sorry but…I've been cashing your checks. You weren't here to pay me and I needed-"

"Lunch tomorrow would be great. I'll see you then."

"Oh! Don't forget this!" Rapunzel set her frying pan aside and ran back into the bedroom for something. She was just now noticing that she was dressed in a nightgown and that the bed she'd once used was tossed like she'd woken her from sleep. How late was it? How much sleep was she really going to get tonight?

"Here!" Rapunzel pranced back out into the living room with a cardboard box, inside there was clothing, a hairdryer and brush, a few more trinkets for hair, and a couple of books. _La Belle Et La Bete_ was on top. "It's the last of your things. I hope you don't mind, I just packed up what was left."

"This is it?" she muttered shocked as she looked it over. She could have sworn she had more here.

"That's all," Rapunzel confirmed. "But that's not surprising, right? I mean…you haven't really lived her for a long time, have you?"

* * *

 **Okay, so first of all Rapunzel working in the library...I hit a small hiccup this season with Ruby. Long time readers will recall that originally I had Belle give Ruby the position in the library, but then season five revealed she was nowhere in Storybrooke. So, I went back and edited MT &U for that. Not completely unexpected, I had warned ya'll that it might happen and that I had a plan to replace Ruby with Tinkerbell. The more I thought about that the more uncomfortable I got. My goal is, after all, to NOT have to edit Moments over and over. And if interviews mean anything on A&E's side and Rose's side then I think there is a high likelihood Tinkerbell could return to Once and all I need is one episode, one line, to force me to go back and change that section again. So I beat them to the chase and put Rapunzel in instead. I liked it. Rapunzel fits in pretty well, and while it's always possible she'll come back for an episode, I think her chance of it is a lot lower than seeing a Tinkerbell return. Second of all, this friendship between her and Belle, it's a good friendship. I know it might not seem like it and that a few of you are probably thinking "WTF you took her job and home, some friend!" but let me assure you this is not the case. Rapunzel already had the job part time and in MT&U Belle did offer the apartment to her. I see what Rapunzel did, not as a manipulative "great now she's gone so I guess it's all mine!" kind of move, but as a loyal "Well if Belle can't be here to do it someone has to and I think she'd want me to make this move until she got back." As far as cashing the paychecks go it was survival. In ME&U Belle was paying Rapunzel from the paycheck she got so if Belle doesn't cash the checks, Rapunzel doesn't get paid either. It was just a survival thing. Belle has enabled Rapunzel to have something of a life with her job and apartment and the boyfriend. And remember it has been six weeks since Belle was gone, for all Rapunzel knows it could be another year. And when Belle left she was working in the shop and living at the house, so it's not as though she left her unemployed and homeless. She has plenty of options. Rapunzel will be back and explain herself in a few chapters but for now, just trust me Rapunzel and Belle will have a very good friendship here and in MD&U. **

**Thank you Fox24, Grace5231973, Carlyle23, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma for your reviews on the last chapter. I'm nervous about this one, about how Rapunzel will be accepted. Just trust me on it, see where I'm going to take it, and in a few weeks if you still don't like it then so be it, but just let her explain herself first. I promise it's coming up in a few chapters. But first a word from Belle's conscious. And by conscious I mean Neal, you'll have to wait a few more weeks for Archie, sorry. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	5. The First Step is Always the Hardest

Tired as she was she slogged along quiet main street in a green dress she didn't remember putting on, with a cardboard box of clothes and knick knacks, a bell jar with a magic rose, a purse, and a body that creaked with every step. When she passed the car it was easy to reconsider simply going home but she was so tired she didn't trust herself to keep her eyes open and when the only significant light on the street came from the lights in her pawn shop she pushed herself down the road farther. The lights in the diner were off and a glance in the windows told her that everyone had left. Where they'd gone was a mystery to her. She'd find out in the morning. For now she wandered around back and let herself into the Bed and Breakfast, which was surprisingly in one piece.

"Thought you were going home?" Granny questioned, already in her robe and slippers for the night.

"It's a long story," she excused just as she had with Rapunzel. Yes, Emma was the Dark One, but her body seemed to be reacting to how wired she'd been for the last few hours and she felt simply drained of energy. "Can I stay here for now?"

"It's been a long time since you stayed here. With the Lost Boys still living here I'm nearly booked up."

She sighed and set her box aside so that she could rub her head. "I know the Lost Boys are with Archie tonight and at this point…I'll take a couch if you have it!" Or someone else's room. "What about Neal? Have you cleaned his stuff out yet?"

Granny nodded. "It's clean, but I haven't been able to get Emma to come down and clear it out yet. She's been stubborn. And now that she's the Dark One I can't very well call her up now can I?"

Unfortunate for Granny, but fortunate for her. "I'll take it," she settled.

Granny was still reluctant to let her stay there, but she could be just as stubborn as Emma and just as forceful as the old woman. When she insisted that it was either Neal's room or a couch, she turned the key over to her.

She was tired when she arrived, but the moment she stepped inside the room, she suddenly felt wide awake again. She hadn't been in this room since…since after the curse that Snow White had cast to save them from Zelena. She'd come in and searched for the dagger when they thought there might have been a chance that Rumpelstiltskin might be alive. She'd put everything back then, frankly she'd put everything away better than it had been before. Not that Neal had been messy, but disorganized certainly! She'd fixed that when they'd lived together in the Enchanted Forest by picking up after him. He hadn't minded then…she didn't think she'd mind this now.

She was silent as she moved around the room. It felt odd and chilly inside; like a tomb or a memorial. Suddenly she knew why Emma hadn't wanted to pick it up. Picking it up would have felt like desecrating the space in some way. Staying here felt like desecrating the space! But…

It had been months since Neal died. In fact, it had been nearly a year since the pair of them set off for the castle and she'd lost him to Zelena. Neal was buried, in his grave, there was a headstone and everything! And this room should have been cleaned out and used months ago.

She turned off the light, set her box of stuff aside and set her bell jar on the bedside table, before letting herself fall into the perfectly made bed. Her eyes closed and she threw her arm across them.

"What are you going to do if Emma finds out you're here? I doubt she'll like it." She wasn't dreaming. Odd, because she was so tired but hearing that voice in her head again made her heart nearly stop. It was so clear and perfect. And when she imagined herself opening her eyes and looking over to the dresser she imagined Neal sitting there. His legs hung off the end, his hands were folded over his knees, and his salt and pepper hair shone in the moonlight but it didn't outshine his gaze.

She swallowed and imagined herself full of energy, sitting up straight and tall so she could face him. "If Emma finds out I'm here then it's my problem, not Granny's."

"Seems logical," he shrugged.

She hadn't seen him like this in so long. The last time was at his grave, just after she'd sent Rumple over the town line. Before that she'd heard his voice in her head but ignored it because she hadn't wanted to hurt Rumple with the pain she felt over his son's death. And after he'd been gone, and Will came along, his voice had vanished.

But now it was back! And she could talk to him again, if only in her head. She felt like she could cry. "You were gone," she choked. "You were gone for such a long time!"

"That you know of," he commented with an odd smirk. "For all you know we've been talking for weeks. You could have made some deep dark discovery about yourself, and you'd never know."

That was…true actually. He was right. For all she knew he'd appeared when they'd left and they'd been having these nightly talks for weeks! "Have we?" she questioned. "Do you know?"

Neal's smirk only grew. "The rules haven't changed since the last time you remember us talking," he explained before tapping his head. "I'm up here. I know what you know. And right now, that means I know a whole lot of nothing."

This was giving her a headache. Not what Neal was saying, she understood that perfectly fine. When they spoke at the cemetery, she'd been vastly aware that it wasn't actually Neal. He was a figment of her imagination, the Neal that she remembered! That was why he only knew what she knew. He was her. But she didn't care. Talking to him, even if it was pretend, it made her feel better. No…it wasn't talking to Neal that was giving her a headache if anything he was making it better.

The problem was this! All of this! She'd left Storybrooke six weeks ago, but it didn't feel like it! It felt like she'd blinked yesterday and when she'd opened her eyes someone had pushed weeks of time into the world around her. And frustrating as it was what had her really frustrated was that she wasn't frustrated enough! It was all backward! She was frustrated because she wasn't frustrated! Because she'd been here before, too many times to count, to be properly upset about it all.

"I can't believe this keeps happening to me-to all of us!"

"You do seem to feel the effects of amnesia more often than everyone else. And then there was the Lacey incident…"

"I never knew just how precious memories were in my childhood," she mused. "I took them for granted until my mother died. Now I wonder what it's like to be everyone else. To just have memories, one story line, one narrative in my head instead of two, instead of everything being so out of order all the time or chopped up into segments defined by which villain we're fighting!"

"Yeah, you know, you really should try to keep a diary or something for when this stuff happens."

She shook her head. It was a good idea but a worthless one. "Wouldn't matter, our memory problems in this town are magical. Magic isn't rational or logical…it's magical! Whatever we do or don't do to preserve our memories…magic would undo it…"

"That's depressing…" he commented. "But reassuring in a way. It's not you Belle. It's someone else. Regina, Zelena, and now Emma…"

"And now Emma…" The last person on earth that she would have ever expected to do anything like this yesterday. Six weeks ago. "Why are you here again, Neal? Where did you go?"

"You found Will," he pointed out. "You had a friend. You didn't need me then."

"That's not true!" she insisted quickly. "I always wanted to talk to you; you just weren't there!"

Neal raised his hand to silence her. "Want…not the same as need." Want wasn't the same as need. She knew that. She knew there was a difference. But it just didn't seem true! There were so many times when Will was around that she hadn't just wanted to talk to him she'd needed to talk to him. She just…she just hadn't known it. Not at the time. Not until just now. If he were really here and alive, it wouldn't make a difference. But he wasn't here. Not really.

"I suppose I just wish-"

"You wish that this wasn't pretend and that we could actually talk. Yeah, well…you and me both I guess. I know what you know, remember. So hey, while I'm stuck in your head why don't we take a crack at why I'm here again."

She thought about it for a moment. Her initial response was to say that she didn't know, but it wasn't true. If Will wasn't here…then she knew why Neal was. "I wanted to talk to someone. Someone I trust. Someone…someone who will tell me the truth. You've never lied to me or tried to manipulate me or kept me somewhere against my will. I need that right now. Even if it's only for a few minutes."

"Wow!" Neal blanched. "Low standards for friends."

She felt herself chuckle with him, at the irony of it all, at the sadness of it. And the truth of it. Neal had never lied to her. Unlike someone else…

"Oh Neal…what am I going to do about your father?" she questioned rubbing her forehead and looking at the glass on the nightstand.

"What do you want to do about him?" he asked.

She chuckled again. Wasn't that the problem that he'd just cleverly pointed out? "I don't know! I don't know what I want anymore. I know I want him to live, and I want him to wake up, but I don't know what I want to happen when he does. I don't know what I need to happen. It's the first time that I don't have a plan-that I can't think of what needs to be done or come up with even a goal to plan for! I don't really know what I want, and I don't really know what I need."

On the dresser, the Neal in her mind sighed and began to slowly nod his head. "Well, they say admitting it is always the first step. I guess we know why I'm here again then."

"Yeah…" she sighed, "I suppose we do." And with that knowledge firmly rooted in her mind, she allowed her eyes to open. She was still lying on the bed in Neal's old room. She was still tired. But Neal wasn't there. She was alone.

Nearly.

Her rose was there. The haze on the glass melted before her eyes and her dying rose presented itself to her. She cried as she rolled over and fit herself against the pillows. "Admitting it is the first step," she muttered. "Now I just have to figure out the second step."

* * *

 **Yep, Neal's back, because she made a lot of progress with him MT, but of course at this point no one knows what happened during all that time so Belle is back to the beginning and Neal is with her. And yes, some of these conversations are going to be taken word for word like parts of this one is with the first time she meets him in Camelot, not all of it, but if I'm going to send her back to the beginning then it's a good place to start. I feel not a shred of guilt over doing that because the creators do it from time to time; give them conversations and sentences that they've word for word had during the times they can't remember. Now Belle does too. I wonder how it'll turn out this time?**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, Teresa Martin, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, and Ladybugsmomma for the reviews you left on the previous chapter. Yay! No one thought of Rapunzel as rude! Oh I'm so excited for you to get to know her a little bit more! As far as Belle and what she thought about Rumple waking up, just remember it's not that she never wants him to wake up, she just doesn't feel prepared for it and is nervous for it to happen. It's like...I don't know...if you were given an 18 page paper and a presentation to make in school. Of course you look forward to it being done, but you also probably dread it coming up, especially in the beginning when you have no idea what your going to work on. We all have relationships like this, where we anticipate and fear at the same time. You might really look forward to seeing your family for Christmas, but dread the moment they ask you about your love life, or school, or who stole who's Malibu Barbie in 1975. It's just part of life. Belle is confused. Neal is going to help her get through that confusion. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	6. Research and Theories

She slept, but she wouldn't say that she slept well. There were times that she had slept well in the comfort of a bed when she hadn't had one for months and even years. There were times she'd slept peacefully in his embrace. But this wasn't like that. She'd slept soundly, but it was simply out of sheer exhaustion. She was tired. And so she'd slept. She felt rested when she awoke but not nearly as refreshed as she would have liked. Her body…how was it possible it hurt more this morning than last night?! Every minute motion made her feel like she was dying! Her only comfort was that when she turned to look at the rose by her bedside, she saw it looked no worse than when she'd gone to sleep. Of course, it didn't look any better either, but she was hoping that her presence, her voice in the shop, by his side, might fix that. There was a void in his soul, but he'd always clung to her in some way. She hoped that he would again.

She got out of bed early, showered quickly, easily slipped on the clothes at the top of her pile, what she'd been wearing before she left for Camelot, and arrived at the shop promptly at nine o'clock and found that it wasn't just Astrid in her shop, but Mother Superior as well. They were talking together in hushed whispers that made her doubt the rose; it made her panic. "What's wrong?" she demanded when she stepped inside. "Is he alright? Has something happened?" she ran into the back and tore the curtain from its place. He was fine. She didn't even need to touch him to know that he was fine. Just see that he hadn't moved, and his chest rose and fell with a normal rhythm. So then why…

"You are back!" Mother Superior gawked with wide eyes when she finally turned to see her. "The flash of light we saw…it was you! W-where did you go? Did you find Merlin? What about Emma?" she demanded. She glanced at Astrid, who looked away nervously and shrugged. "She hasn't been here long," she muttered awkwardly. A short phrase but it was enough to tell her she hadn't passed on the messages she'd given her yet.

So she told her the tale. All that she knew of it. The less than twenty-four hours she knew of it. She told them about Zelena and the wand, how Killian let her escape and she opened a portal to Oz, a portal that Regina used to take them to Camelot, the place Emma had been remade. She told them how Emma came back to them a short while later and the Knights that found them. She told them of their trip to the castle and looking up at the magnificent palace as she walked across the bridge, then being back at Granny's again last night. She confessed they were missing time, that she didn't know what had happened while they were away and neither did the others, and she also confessed that she did not know how it happened, but Emma had worsened and embraced the Darkness inside of her. They'd failed. And now they were all in danger unless they could figure out how what she was planning and how to break the hold the Darkness had on her.

She could tell by the look in her eyes that she was overwhelmed and surprised by the story she told. But she kept herself composed as she nodded at the story and suggested they come up with something to get their memories back. That was the key to it all. Emma didn't want them to know what had happened, so clearly something important had happened. Perhaps they could use the memory potion that they'd once given her for Lacey. She shook her head and tried to smile at her offer. It wouldn't work. The base of that potion had been to recover memories lost to alternative ones. It wouldn't retrieve what they'd lost. Only Emma could return them. Unless she broke this curse they were under. She had to get to work. Fortunately, she knew right where to start.

The book she'd left with Astrid, the one recovered from the diner, the one that she'd accidentally taken with her. She looked it over again. It was different. The others that had come over with them were introductory books, books about magic that she could get in her library, she remembered from the weathered yellow pages that some had been old, but others had been new and fresh in languages she didn't have to struggle to understand. This one was different. On the outside, it didn't look very old but on the inside…the language was old. It was one that she recognized but only just barely. It was dead, but luckily for them, it was the language many of their own had been derived from. It was the "Latin" of their world! It was difficult but she could read it with…with a bit of time of course.

She checked on Rumple again, finally putting her hands on his head and heart and confirming that he was just as physically well as he was yesterday. Then she took her bell jar and the book and went out into the front room. She dug a notebook and a pen out of the front counter and set her materials out on the desk. The book on her left, the notebook on her right…word by word she translated. Not that there was much to translate. The first sentence wasn't a sentence at all. It was a date! For…hundreds of years ago! Long after this language should have perished! How was that possible?!

She looked over the second sentence, which was actually a sentence but…it didn't give her any more answers than the date had. Just more questions. "Experiments of me…were…successful-negated not…of the day prior…unknown word of male gender…of my…will work…with me…this day…to success." She scratched her head and looked at what she'd written before writing a smoother translation below. "My experiments were unsuccessful yesterday," she breathed out loud. "My…something…will work with me today to succeed." Not bad. Other than the unknown "something" she had it. But what exactly was 'it'?

She thumbed to the page before but there was nothing, yet clearly this sentence indicated something that the reader should have been aware of before reading this passage. So…it was a...sequal? A volume? But…this was the only book like it in the pile last night. They'd only taken one volume? Or had access to it? So then what had come before this? And what made this volume so special? What were the experiments being worked on? Who was he working on them with? And why were they important?

She sighed and rubbed her head. Only more questions! But at least there was one way to find out the answer. She had a few hours before Rapunzel showed up for lunch. She may as well get to work. Page after page she worked. It was tedious. She wrote down words and smoothed over sentences. She couldn't identify some words. But she got the majority of it-if she could count less than three pages in a few hours a "majority", though to be fair it was double sided, and the handwriting was small.

It was a man, or a woman, written in the first person there was no way to tell the gender, writing about magical experiments. There was a male figure this person wrote of often with him. His age wasn't clear, but she suspected he was young as whoever this was provided shelter and food for him. But there seemed to be no familial contact. She would have recognized words like son, daughter, father, and mother, but those words weren't present. The two of them worked with the magic, though, sometimes together. And it was against something that they were working. Something dark. Something that had taken something. Someone. Her jaw dropped as she pointed the words out with her pen. "I will-negated…stop…for…the Dark…took…the love of me. I think with regret for her…this must…to be finished. For…Nimue."

"I will not stop for the Darkness took my love. I...feel sorry for her, this must be finished. For Nimue."

Her. Nimue. Who-

Behind her the sound of the bell on the shop door rang out. Her discovery already had her heart racing and when she spun around she already feared the worst, trying to remember where she'd put her safety potions and weapons around the store for when Cruella and Malificent had been a threat! But it was only Killian. He strode toward her with a purpose that would have made her nervous if the world hadn't turned on its head and suddenly he was the good guy while Emma was the villain.

"True love's kiss, I need to know why it didn't work for you and the bloody crocodile," he demanded, standing before her in almost no time at all. For a moment she was taken aback by the intrusion, but then she realized that she really shouldn't be. If the roles were reversed, if Emma had been the Dark One all along and just passed it on to Rumple then she'd be searching for ways to destroy the curse and get him back too. The first natural step was to question the cure to every curse. The cure that apparently didn't work on this curse. True love's kiss. She just wished she had better news for him.

"Well…it did work…the first time," she explained. "It awoke the man behind the beast, but…Rumple got scared of a life without power and…chose power over love. He pulled away from me and in that moment Darkness forever regained its grip on him." The only way he would have been able to give the Darkness up via a kiss from that moment on was if he wanted to. And obviously, he hadn't. "You know a curse isn't a curse anymore when the afflicted wants it."

"That won't be a problem with Emma," Killian insisted before turning to go.

"Killian wait!" The memories were painful, and she didn't like sharing them with Killian, but it was an odd dilemma they found themselves in. The man she'd once had nothing in common with was about to have everything in common with her. Odd. She felt sorry for him because he was nearly as ignorant as she had been. Or maybe just naïve. And she felt responsible in some way. Like if she didn't stop him or warn him then she'd be partly to blame for the pain that he'd feel. The memory of what it felt like for her…she couldn't let anyone go through that. Not Killian, not Emma…she wouldn't even want Regina to go through it. "I know you think you can handle a Dark One-"

"I've battled one for centuries, I'm still here!" Killian yelled back. But at least he'd stopped.

"But you were trying to kill him!" she fought back, the words still sour in her mouth when she thought of how close he'd come a couple of times. "And now…well…" But it didn't matter now. The battle he faced this time around was completely different. It wasn't a battle to take a life it was a battle to replace the light! It couldn't be about hate. It had to be about love and when it came to love and Dark Ones…she was an expert in that field. It wasn't pretty. "It's far easier to hate a Dark One than it is to love one."

He heard her. But he didn't believe her. Or he didn't want to. She could see it in his angry eyes. She wasn't terribly surprised. If it had been her, when it had been her, she hadn't wanted to believe it either. Now she knew, because she'd experienced it. Maybe this wasn't a lesson that she could teach, maybe it was something that had to be experienced.

"Be careful," she insisted as he turned to leave, glaring at her as though she'd just suggested he murder Emma instead of warning him about the oncoming danger. He left without a word and she turned back to her book, ignoring the itch in her legs to go after him.

Emma wouldn't give up the Darkness. She'd seen her last night. She didn't know what led to her being the way that she was but last night it was clear that she had embraced the Darkness as completely as her husband had the first time that she'd kissed him. Emma had something to do here, even if it was only punishing them for some unknown misdeed. She wanted her magic. Needed it. And as long as she wanted and needed it Killian didn't stand a chance at getting through to her.

Sadly, she shook her head and turned back to her book. She couldn't stop him. It was something he had to figure out just as she had. She'd done what she could, now all she had to do was what no one else had been able to do for her. Sit back and be prepared for when his plan failed.

* * *

 **I feel a little on edge about this chapter. Fox24, my supreme apologies, I know you are usually my Hook editor, but there was nothing to be done about this one as it was already canon. I think the problem I have with it was that there just wasn't enough to it, so in this chapter, it leaves me feeling that there was more to be said, but no matter how I tried to work it in it just wouldn't work. So in the end, it became a what you see is what you get. I truly am sorry if this chapter is not up to snuff.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Curly J, Fox24, Carlyle23, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma for the interesting comments you left on the previous chapter. Much appreciated as always. Rapunzel is in the next chapter, as is Regina. I know I'm not happy with how this chapter came out, but I hope that you'll at least enjoy the Research!Belle sections. Those are always my favorite part! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	7. The Same Thing Over and Over Again

Rapunzel had kept the lunch date they'd made in the middle of the night and considering the way that it was made, the hour that it was made, she had to be impressed with the girl. Though at the moment Rapunzel walked in with sandwiches and cokes over from Granny's she'd have been impressed with a pine nut. By the time Rapunzel finally arrived, her head was spinning from so many words and sentences in the strange book she was working on. The words were starting to blur together. And the panic and worry for wherever Killian was and whatever it was he was doing didn't help. The break that she offered was welcomed.

She'd tried, in the weeks after Rumple left and she'd employed Rapunzel, to get to know her better. But of course, there was a limit to everything. Life got busy, she'd taken over the shop, spent time with Will, and good intentions faded as Rapunzel's skill next door required less and less of her. Suddenly their relationship was only that of friendly colleagues. But that was no reason to give up on it entirely. Rumple was in a coma, Will was gone, Ruby was gone, Neal was dead…she needed a friend. And as they spoke it was clear that Rapunzel did too. Or maybe just someone to talk to.

She dragged stools out into the front room, and they ate over the front counter where she'd been working. As they ate, she told her tale. All that there was of it at least. It was the same story she'd told the nuns and told Rumple in the quiet as she'd taken care of him this morning. There wasn't a lot to it, but it was enough to occupy, mystify, and panic. Rapunzel didn't pry. She appreciated that. Instead of leaning over to look or casting glances into the back room where she'd just confessed Rumple lay nearly lifeless, she kept her eyes on her.

Rapunzel told her what she'd missed while she was away in Camelot, further proving that they really had been gone for six weeks. Life had all but disappeared as far as she was concerned, but for Rapunzel…life seemed to have appeared for the first time in her life. Without her around she assumed full responsibility of the library, when she didn't return in a month she'd moved into the upstairs apartment. She'd taken to seeing Archie for some of her more irrational fears about this new world and life outside of a tower, as well as problems in the town, fully taking on the role she'd once had while others had been in Neverland. And then about ten days ago something new had happened. She'd met a man…in a very odd way.

"He tried to steal a book from the library?!" Belle gawked.

"Yeah, big thick one…he tried to smuggle it out under his jacket," Rapunzel giggled from the other side of the counter.

"Why on earth would he want to steal a book?!"

"Ah, well…it was from your private collection, the magic books you keep locked up in the back. He had a sister and...long story short; she was kidnapped as a baby by a witch because of her hair."

"Her hair?"

"Yeah, I'm skipping some of the big details but, it was magic, the witch didn't want to let her go, she'd been lost since the curse, and while you were gone he finally located her. Apparently, their parents died, he says of a broken heart when she was never found, so when he finally located the witch and found her, he took it upon himself to save her. He needed the magic to get her, so he tried to steal it. He had a bit of a checkered past before the curse broke but…there was a time I had an odd past too. We all do. So instead of letting him take it, I gave him full access as long as he let me help him. We managed to solve the problem, got his sister home, put the books back, and the next thing I know he was asking me to dinner," she explained quickly, looking deep into her drink and blushing.

It was a fascinating story, not to mention comforting. It was nice to know that other people in town had magical issues to deal with besides her and her odd little family. But it was also nice to hear of Rapunzel. She was her age, but she was like a teenager growing up all at once because of the time she'd spent in the tower.

"So…do your parents know? Did you tell them yet?"

Rapunzel sighed and shook her head. "No, not yet. I mean, I haven't seen him more than a handful of times over the last couple of weeks, and I'm not even really sure it's going anywhere. Besides…I know it sounds selfish but…you know, for so long my whole life was one room and then it was my parents and now…I'm enjoying this. The library and the apartment and the Eugene. It's nice finally having a life of my own!"

"Wait…Eugene?" she blanched. "I thought you said his name was Flynn."

Rapunzel's jaw dropped, and her face suddenly turned red. "It is!" she exclaimed with wide eyes. "I mean…it's just…he calls himself Flynn but his real name is Eugene," she admitted with a sad and guilty face. "You can't tell anyone! He's sworn me to secrecy!"

She giggled a bit at her reaction and shook her head, promising to keep the secret, but also knowing that it was more than a passing fling if he'd revealed a secret name to her. "Well, I can't wait to meet him, he sounds-"

The bell to the shop door rang and when she glanced up she saw the last person on earth she ever expected would have walked into the store.

"Get out I need to talk to her!" Regina demanded of Rapunzel, coming right up to the counter and pressing against it. "Didn't you hear me? I said get out!"

Rapunzel looked nervous. She opened her mouth and closed it before glancing over at her, questioning what she was supposed to do. She knew Regina scared Rapunzel, she had ever since they'd been in the castle together. She wasn't exactly excited to be left alone in a room with Regina, especially after what happened last time and the way she'd denied it all last night, but she couldn't ask Rapunzel to stay here and stand between the two of them after she'd come so far. Besides, she wasn't worried. Rapunzel had seen her, at least if something happened she was a witness.

"It's fine," she excused Rapunzel with an icy voice. "I'll clean up. We can check in soon." Rapunzel nodded once, then gathered up her drink and coat and hurried out of the store without looking back. The moment the door closed behind she turned her eyes to Regina. Her anger snapped. And she didn't care how terrible she sounded. She was done with her.

"Get out," she snarled.

"Just hear me out," she begged.

She only reached beneath the counter and grabbed the spell that would transform anyone but her into a toad, the same one she threatened Cruella and Ursula with once upon a time. "Get out Regina or I throw this! I'm done playing your games!"

"I'm going to tell the others what I did to you!" she shouted back. That caught her attention, but not enough to give her compassion.

"When?" she asked.

"Today. Next time I see them."

She shook her head and rolled her eyes because she just didn't believe her anymore. "Wrong answer-"

"I'm sorry!" Regina screamed as she turned to go into the back. "I'm sorry I didn't say anything last night. I was scared."

She fought back a laugh as she turned back to her. _Regina_ was scared! "So was I…when I was sitting in my home without a memory of how or why I was there! Unable to feel anything, afraid my husband had done something awful to me when all along it wasn't him I had to be afraid of, but you! Again!"

"I took your memory to spare you…" Regina admitted as if it was nothing like she'd done her a kindness.

"No…you took my memory because you hoped to return my heart before I could figure it out and then I'd never know and never find out, am I wrong?"

Regina ground her jaw as she stared at her unhappily; clearly caught. "No, that's more or less it."

She shook her head and finally put down the potion she'd been holding. She'd admitted it, but she hadn't needed to, she'd known the truth the entire time, just refused to acknowledge it until now. "You should have just asked for help instead. I would have offered-"

"You did offer," Regina insisted quickly with a guilty frown. "I didn't ask for help I just told you I needed it. You offered to help me find another way, but I…didn't listen. I took your heart without your permission and your memories-"

"To make you feel better. Not me," she insisted before Regina could even try to lie again.

She looked her dead in the eye and slowly began to nod. "That's probably true," she admitted. "I'm sorry I took your heart and your memories the way I did but…I won't take it back. Doing what I did got Robin Hood and Roland back home to me safe and sound, away from Zelena. And it did allow your husband to come to your rescue."

"And that's all wonderful but it doesn't exonerate you," she pointed out. "I'm done, Regina! Your words and excuses can't get you back what you lost, not this time!"

Regina's brow furrowed and she reeled back in confusion. "What I…" suddenly Regina sighed and shook her head, an angry smile curving against her mouth as she appeared to finally understand. "I can't get your trust back if you won't give me a chance to get it back."

"Why should I do that? Regina, I've given you that chance before, let you earn it, and you did, and then you took my heart! There's no reason I should trust you ever again!"

"Then don't trust me again. Hate me forever, banish me you're your Christmas card list, and never speak to me again, fine! Just don't let Robin suffer because of me. He's your friend, and you can't let him-"

"Robin?! What does he have to do with this?!"

"He's why I'm here!" Regina shouted, her eyes going wide and desperate. "He's in trouble. I came here because if anyone can help me figure out what is after him and save his life, it's you. I just don't understand why Emma would want to do this to him. Me I understand! Her parents, Hook, even Henry I'd understand. She trusted us, just like you did, we'd be the most likely ones to let her down and hurt her, but Robin?! You, Roland, even the dwarves…I don't understand what you all could have done to make her want to hurt you!"

Her train of thought was scattered, it was hard to understand how she'd gone from what thought, one conversation, to another but somehow she managed to at least follow her query. It was an interesting conundrum, but not for Regina…for her.

"That's a stupid question for the Evil Queen that made sure I never made it back to Rumpelstiltskin and then took my heart," she muttered. Regain looked at her with curiosity, still utterly confused. "If you want to hurt someone, you don't kill them. You make them live with the pain and the hurt…" she prompted.

"Fastest way to do that is through someone they love," Regina realized. "Yesterday Emma said we were about to be punished."

"I was there."

"This is it, isn't it? This is my punishment. Losing Robin!"

"Possibly. In Emma's mind at least."

"No. No, if she wants to punish me then she can punish me. I'm not going to let Robin pay the price for my mistakes no matter what they are. Which means I need to fight it! I need your help for that. Robin, needs your help for that."

She felt her jaw tighten again; her automatic response was to say no and refuse her…but then she realized it wasn't Regina she was refusing. It was Robin Hood and just as Regina had said, he was her friend. She didn't remember much of Camelot, but she did remember the journey they took from the diner to the castle, and how Robin had stepped up to ask her about her rose and if there was anything that he could do. They weren't close, but Robin was a good man and a good friend. She couldn't let anything happen to him and she certainly couldn't let Roland lose his father.

"For Robin…what can I do?"

* * *

 **Not a huge fan of this chapter either. I don't know, maybe it's because I set these two conversations up in Camelot so now it feels like we're repeating them. Although there are some differences as to how this conversation and even the one with Hook played out...I don't know. But I do hope you enjoy Rapunzel, that you'll think they make a good pair. I know their bit in all of this is short but it seemed necessary to me.**

 **Thank you, Kathyrn Claire O'Connor, Grace5231973, Fox24, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma for all the comments and wonderful support you give me through all these fictions, especially when I'm a little less sure of certain chapters. I do my best, but sometimes I fear it just isn't enough. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	8. Hell Hath No Fury

The story that Regina gave her to work with was unsettling. Apparently they were not the only people that Emma had brought home. She'd brought all of Camelot as well, horses, chainmail, swords and all. But it wasn't like it had been when they'd come back after they'd been in Mist Haven for a year and the Merry Men were gathered together in the woods with tents and general supplies. They'd been scattered around the woods, without memories, without understanding of where they were or even who they were. "So…their memories are even more far gone than ours are?!"

"Yeah, either that or Leroy doesn't leave much of an impression," Regina answered carelessly. According to her Arthur and a couple of his knights had stumbled upon the dwarf in the middle of town, very lost, very confused. When they'd made themselves known, Mary Margaret and David "the royal crusaders" as Regina called them, ran fearlessly into the woods to help them, like always. They delivered supplies, tents, and round as many of them up as possible into a camp until they could figure out what to do with them beyond that. "Robin and I went to help and while we were in the woods…something just attacked him. Only Robin! No one else! Roland was right there and it didn't pay any attention. It was like it only had eyes for him."

She nodded. "I dont' suppose you got a description of those eyes that might actually help me with identification?"

Regina shrugged. "Pale skin…black clothes-"

"Emma?" she assumed.

"Not Emma, but..." she corrected with a distant look in her eyes, as if she was seeing the scene again in her mind. "It flew through the air and had a scream like a banshee, but it wasn't one."

She closed her eyes as she tried to fathom what she'd said. It made no sense. What she'd described…it was a banshee! "Right…looks like a banshee, sounds like a banshee, but _not_ a banshee?" she blanched.

"No red hair."

"Ah! Not a banshee," she concluded. Trying to pry information out of Regina was like trying to channel magic in a thunderstorm. Possible, but frustrating and difficult.

"But it did have red eyes," Regina added suddenly. "Black clothes, pale skin, and odd limbs, like it was made of branches, and…its teeth were sharp. I only caught a glimpse…but I'm sure of it."

"Wraith?" she suggested.

Regina shook her head. "Too distinct. And _taking_ Robin isn't exactly ordinary Wraith behavior. It would have just killed him on the spot. Why would a thing like that take him? If it's going to kill him why take him?!"

Her eyes widen as she watched Regina. Her eyes were so wild, her gestures so frantic she didn't realize… "You're bleeding," she muttered.

"What?!"

"You're nose. It-it's bleeding." Regina reached up to touch it and it was only when her hand came away bloody that she snapped to attention and grabbed some tissues for her to use. "It's fine," Regina dismissed as she took the tissues and held them to her face. "Can you help me or not?!"

Of course she could. And she did. Against her better judgement and with her bell jar in hand she left Rumple and went to the library to collect books. It wasn't hard to decide which ones that she needed and it wasn't so much a research project as it was a search project. Regina had given her a description, she just needed to figure out who or what matched the description and what that meant for Robin Hood. It was like looking for the Chernabog all over again...though she quickly discovered that Killian had been a much better assistant.

Regina helped at first. She helped look through page after page in book after book she set before her, negatively identifying something called a Gnarl, because it was too masculine looking, and something called a Dementor, because it was too much like a Wraith and not enough like what she'd seen. As the hours passed she gave up looking and started to irritate her by pacing back and forth as well as looking out the window every three seconds like she might see this creature flying through the sky with Robin at any moment.

"It you're not going to help then at least do something other than pace," she mumbled as she turned another page and-

The picture was odd. But it showed black and white, with lines that could have been tree branches. She turned the page back to find the beginning of what she'd just found, but found the explanation went back farther than just the figure on the page. "Charon," she muttered as she read.

 _"Charon is one of the deadliest and weakest of the Underworld. A ferryman, cursed forever to do Hades bidding in the mortal world, he is tasked with ferrying souls with unfinished business from the mortal world to the Underworld, the place every soul must pass, at least for some time, before moving on to a final resting place._

 _"Every night, at the moons Zenith, the portal to the Underworld opens for Charon. Portals can be created from bodies of water that are big enough to contain the boat, but still enough that the boat does not overturn, for if it does, life and death itself would be overturned. Once Charon has arrived he collects the souls of the dead using a special lamp, given to him by Hades himself. The souls seek out it's light, and he transports them to the Underworld where they make the choice to move on._

 _"Charon is cursed to never leave his boat, only at the rare and special permission of Hades is he permitted to walk on dry land, therefore for certain cases, Hades has gifted Charon with an army of female bounty hunters called 'Furies.'_

 _"A Fury is, quite simply, an inferior goddess of vengeance turned demon that Charon uses to help claim souls that belong to Hades when they have not yet passed, typically souls that are owed for the price of unpaid for magic. Released from the Underworld every sunrise, the Furies responsibility is to find the undead soul and take it to the nearest body of water so Charon and claim it. Once at water the Fury removes the undead's soul before Charon and uses it as passage back to the Underworld. Only the equivalent of a human soul will do for passage. And should a fury see a second sunrise without safe passage to the Underworld, she will fade, and her soul will be devoured by Cerberus for her failure. A sister Fury will go forth the next sunrise to do what the previous Fury could not._

 _"Charon is relentless and will not stop his search until he has a soul to replace what was lost, for Charon lives in fair that should Hades not be given his due, the fate of the soul will become his own."_

She looked over the picture and felt her stomach flip over. The explanation was clear and yet puzzling at the same time. A life for a life. That was essentially what it was saying. Charon wouldn't stop hunting until he had a soul to pay the price of magic that someone hadn't. Robin was the one they'd chosen, but if she'd read it right, it wasn't required to be his own. He'd take any soul. But…

If this was the creature then what on earth had Robin gotten into to owe his soul to Hades?! Was it something that Robin had done for someone else? A deal he'd made? Or had someone else made the deal, and Robin was an innocent bystander? And if this was true why come after him now?! Why not back in the Enchanted Forest?! Why not in Camelot?! Well…there was the water issue. Charon needed water, and if this were true, then the Fury would only have had the time from sunrise to the moons Zenith to get Robin to the portal and take his soul. Maybe they hadn't been close to water?

No…they'd been in Camelot! She could remember walking across a bridge over water, a moat, to get to the castle. That was plenty close. Why would Charon have needed a Fury?

Unless they weren't there the entire time…unless they'd moved or left…

Or it wasn't the Fury at all.

She looked at the picture drawn before her. She didn't know the right answer. But she knew that there was a way to get it. "Regina?" but when she looked up Regina was missing. She looked around the shop but she wasn't in the front room. A floorboard creaked in the back room.

Rumple…

Her heart raced as she picked her book up and went to the curtain. When she'd told Regina to do something other than pace she hadn't meant go into the back! She could hear her voice in the back, talking, saying…something. "You're the reason no one believes in me! But I'm going to prove you wrong. I'm going to prove them all wrong! Just…"

She let herself into the back. "Regina!" she called as she sat there on the cot with Rumple. She didn't know what all that was about, she didn't know where it had come from but she knew that if there was a chance that Rumple could hear her as she spoke, as she liked to believe, then she had to accept that he could hear everyone, Regina included. And even though what Regina was saying had some validity, Rumple's soul was struggling to hold onto something. There was no need to make him want to let go further. "I uh…I found something!" she informed her, making the motion for her to follow her out into the front room. She had the book with her, but she didn't need Rumple to hear all this.

"I want you to look at a picture and tell me if it's what you saw…" she opened the book between them and pointed at the picture.

Regina reached out and grasped it, her knuckles white as her fingers curled over it and she examined it before declaring "that's it! That's what took Robin!"

Her stomach turned over. "I was afraid of that," she mumbled reaching out and removing the book from her hands before she could bend it. "So…Robin isn't gone yet. The creature you saw is a bounty hunter of sorts. It works with Charon, the ferryman of the Underworld. He can't leave his boat, or water, so he sends something in his place to bring to him in exchange for a ride back to the Underworld. I can tell you that the kind of water it needs for it's portal is very specific. Still water. Lots of it. So, a very large lake or bay. Not the ocean, not a river or stream. That's where you'll find Robin, that's where she took him to wait for Charon and prove she's taken a soul. It's called a Fury."

"A Fury?!" Regina blanched.

"A demon sent from the Underworld to collect the unpaid price of magic."

"Someone used magic in Camelot and didn't pay up."

She nodded. Probably Robin since it was after him, though she didn't say that because the truth was that she didn't know for sure. Magic and who paid the price for what wasn't an exact science. It was complicated. And frankly Robin using magic sounded just as unlike him as Robin not paying a price. It made sense except when it didn't.

"Yeah but Regina the Fury doesn't come for just any price. It comes when the price of magic is a life."

Regina's faced seemed to melt from confusion into sadness. "Robin…" she cried. What on Earth had Robin gotten himself into? What had they gotten themselves into? She didn't know. That was the awfulness of it! Had something happened to Robin and someone hadn't paid the price to save him? Or had something happened to Roland, or Regina, or Henry even and Robin hadn't paid the price. She had no idea. "You mean…that demon is here to drag him to the Underworld?" Regina clarified loudly.

She nodded. Crude…but essentially, yes. "Yeah…but!" she was quick to add, the one thing that might be helpful in all of this. "The portal only opens when the moon reaches it's Zenith." Which gave them time, but not a lot of it. It was already dark outside.

"Then there's still some time to stop it!" Regina realized moving out from behind the counter and going to the door before she could finish.

"Ah, it's…it's not that simple!" she insisted reaching out and grabbing her arm to stop her. Despite what she'd heard her say to Rumple, she did believe Regina could figure this out. She had to because she didn't want anything to happen to Robin. Regina was right he was her friend, and they'd been known to solve bigger problems than this in less time. But if they were going to fix this they needed every last piece of information that they could get. Every last damning piece of information. "I'm afraid there's only one way to save Robin Hood…someone has to give their life in his place."

* * *

 **Shake my head at scenes that don't make any sense. Aside from the Regina/Belle thing which we handled in the last chapter. So...we're supposed to believe that all the while Regina is in the back room yelling at Rumple Belle is just out front totally chill with it? Come on writers; Belle doesn't even let people who kidnap her get treated like that, are we really supposed to believe that she's going to let Regina do it while Rumple is in a coma? I couldn't accept it, so what was enough to distract Belle to it? A good bit of research. It wasn't great, but it was the best I could figure seeing as how there was no sound of the bell chiming. If I'd heard that I would have sent her to the library.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, Curly J, Rumbellefan, Teresa Martin, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Carlyle23, and Ladybugsmomma for your reviews. I'm always pleased to hear when people are enjoying the fiction. I hope that you will continue to enjoy it even with the silly mistakes like these. I promise, in a couple of episodes it'll get better. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	9. The Terms of Their Agreement

Regina wasn't happy, not with her last piece of information. And why should she have been?! "Someone has to give their life in his place" weren't exactly encouraging words!

"What?!" she blanched. "Are you sure?"

She'd nodded and explained. The book hadn't exactly spelled it out, but she could read between the lines. "Charon appears each night to collect souls of the departed. He's like Santa Clause for Spirits only they come to him. But the price of magic is different. The souls aren't free; they're still alive. So Charon sends the fury out to collect the soul. She drags the living person to the water, when Charon appears she takes the soul and exchanges it for passage back to the Underworld, she won't survive if she sees a second sunrise."

Regina had looked up at her hopefully then. "What happens after she's destroyed?!" she inquired eagerly, the idea already sparking in her mind.

She'd only shaken her head because she had it wrong. "Another one is released to do what she couldn't. On and on until Charon has a soul. He won't stop until he has it, there's no outlasting him but maybe…maybe you could outrun him…" she suggested timidly.

Regina looked her over with desperate eyes. "I'm listening."

"There's no magic beyond the town line. Furies don't exist, magic doesn't exist. Robins already crossed once before maybe if you took him over the line it would buy you time-"

Regina shook her head. "Emma set a trap around the town line. One of the dwarves crossed this morning as an experiment, he turned into a tree. No one is crossing the line, not until the curse is lifted."

That had been news to her!

No. She wasn't terribly surprised that Regina had left upset. But no matter what she thought of Regina and her ideas she couldn't deny that she was smart and effective, not to mention driven when it came to Robin Hood. She'd do whatever it took to make sure he survived, and there wasn't a doubt in her mind that he would be alright. It was the "whatever it took" part that made her nervous. And for that reason, she grabbed a potion from behind the counter and uncorked it before going back and sitting, or perhaps guarding Rumple. Regina was angry at Rumple and had demonstrated time and time again that she had no qualms about using her when she had to. The last thing she needed was Regina coming back and trading her for Robin Hood or thinking that Rumple already had one foot in the grave and using him as the collateral.

So she sat on her stool and checked Rumple over. Heart, breath, skin. All normal. "Don't listen to her," she whispered wetting a rag and wringing it out before using it to pat down his face. "Regina made her own choices just like you made yours. She could have said no and walked away-she should have said no and walked away! That's something she has to live with, not you."

But the words tasted bad in her mouth. She set the rag aside and looked him over sadly because she knew that it wasn't entirely true. Yes, Regina had made her choices, and she was responsible for them, but Rumple was the one that had given the choices to her. How different would the Evil Queen be if they'd never met? "I'm not saying that there aren't things you're going to have to live with. All I'm saying is…it's better to face them and live with it than turning and running away. Cowards run. You're only a coward if you choose not to wake up. A hero would wake up. A man…a man would come home. He'd do whatever it took. I'm asking you to do whatever it takes now. Please. Just-"

Her worst fear came to pass. The bell on the front door chimed. She glanced at Rumple, unmoving and safe, then stood her ground and grabbed the vile of potion. Quietly she slipped her shoes off and avoided the places on the floor that she knew the wood would groan, making her way toward the curtain. Her heart raced as she heard someone walking around just as quietly and slowly as she was. Regina? She wasn't sure. She couldn't see a shadow through the curtain.

Cowards ran, but heroes faced their fears.

So she reached out, grabbed the side of the curtain, counted down for five, then pulled it back, arm ready to throw her potion, and-

Her jaw dropped at the same time the man before her jumped at her sudden appearance. "Belle!" he piqued glancing at her bare feet and the potion in her hand.

She sighed as she set it aside. "Papa!" she cried launching herself forward into his embrace.

"Oh my beautiful girl!" he croaked as he held her so tight he made her wince at the pain she felt everywhere. "I was so worried when you didn't come home! I checked the library for you, but the girl there said you'd gone and when I saw Granny's was torn in two-"

"I'm fine, Papa!" she sighed releasing him. "I'm fine, barely a scratch."

"Where were you, Belle?" he asked without taking his hands off her. "No one knew where you'd gone, not even the dwarves! And now no one seems to know! Granny's is reopening for dinner like it's any other night! Where have you been?"

She fought back the groan that she felt deep inside of herself. How many times had she been asked that today? How many times had she told the same story over and over again?!

Still, he was her father and he was clearly very worried. They'd been gone six weeks; that was three lunches that she'd missed with him. He deserved to know. Frankly, he deserved to know what had happened even before that. She remembered the life Rumple and Isaac had given her in the book. It was pleasant, but only because the past she'd had in the book had been so terrible.

"Is that the way he sees me?" he questioned glancing shamelessly into the backroom when she'd finished her explanation of the book and Camelot and her missing memories and even the citizens of Camelot in the forest while the others battled for Robin's life. It was the book that he came back to. Somehow she'd known it wouldn't take it all well. Though he didn't look angry exactly. Sad, perhaps, but not anywhere close to the anger she'd expected him to have. "He sees me as some evil ruler who treated his daughter so disrespectfully."

She sighed at the awkward position she felt put in. It wasn't entirely Rumple's fault that he saw her father that way. She'd told him so much of her childhood and later her life when she'd been engaged that she'd probably been responsible for that. Her father wasn't an evil ruler, but she did feel she'd been treated with disrespect, her father just didn't understand that and probably never would. But it was water under the bridge as far as she was concerned.

"That part was probably more Isaac than Rumple," she lied. "All he really wanted was to have me back and make me happy."

"And so it seems he's succeeded," her father pointed out as he finally turned back to face her. "You're here, back by his side…"

She opened her mouth but had to close it because his words had caught her off guard and she didn't quite know how to respond. He wasn't right, but he wasn't wrong either. And they'd been doing so well where Rumple was concerned. They'd met for lunch every other week after Rumple had gone and not once had her father brought up what had happened or rubbed her nose in Rumple's lies. She didn't want to take a step back now.

"He's human now," she began, making the only excuse that she could. "We managed to remove the darkness from him, but he fell into a coma because of how scarred his soul is from the hundreds of years of abuse it's taken. I can't leave him like that. I just…I can't."

"And what about when he wakes up?!" her father demanded. "What happens then? Do you stay? Do you-"

"I don't know!" she shouted, crossing her arms over her chest and remembering to catch her breath. She couldn't let this happen. She couldn't let them start to fight again because of Rumple. She wasn't going to sacrifice one relationship for another because it would only destroy the one she had left out of bitterness. She couldn't let Rumple take her father from her, and she couldn't let her father take Rumple from her. If she was going to make her choice, then it had to be on her own. "You don't have to approve of my choices, father. All you have to do is support me no matter what, with or without your approval. I'll make my own choices, my own decisions. I'll decide my own fate."

Her father stared at her unflinching and suspiciously for a moment before looking her up and down. "You're not pregnant, are you?" he questioned.

"No, Papa! Of course not!" she felt her cheeks turn red as she moved around him and collected her shoes from the back because she honestly didn't know what to think of that assumption. Did he really think that she would go back to Rumple, after everything he'd done just because she was pregnant? She'd probably run the other way if a child was involved! Of course, that was irrelevant because she wasn't pregnant! Thankfully. She hadn't thought of it until right now but she'd been fairly careless after they were married, not keeping track of her calendar or counting for safe days. She was lucky she wasn't pregnant. There was a lot for the pair of them to think about, the last thing they need right now was to put a baby in the middle of the mess they'd made their marriage into.

"I just…I just don't know what I'm doing," she admitted when she put her shoes back on and felt three inches taller. "My head and my heart are at war and until one of them wins, until Rumple wakes up and we figure out where to go from there, I know what is right, and that is to stay by his side. I can't be done with this chapter in my life yet, Papa. I'm not ready. I've never loved anyone the way I love him and if it's going to be over, if there truly is no hope, then I need to be certain about it. And if there is hope then I need to see it through. And you don't need to approve of that, I just need to know that you love me no matter what I choose."

Her father was silent for a moment as if he was considering all his options. Then he nodded. "Of course, I love you, Belle," he finally smiled, holding out his arms for her. She walked into them and hugged him once more. "I wouldn't worry if I didn't love you. No matter what happens, you'll always have my heart."

She felt relief uncoil in her stomach. That was all she needed. She didn't care if he and Rumple never got along, if they never sat down to dinner together, or had a conversation. And it didn't matter to her if she could feel the way her father wanted to step in and make the decisions for her. What was important to her was that he didn't! All she wanted was for him to love her no matter what she chose. That was the important thing. If he could do that, then they would be okay.

If only it could be that easy with Rumpelstiltskin.

* * *

 **Foreshadowing! Pretty major foreshadowing actually. I hope that you enjoy that. I wanted to included Maurice in MC &U because it does seem necessary. Alas, the show seems to have completely forgotten about him. I mean really, when was the last time that we saw and heard Belle and her father have an actually present day Storybrooke conversation. As far as I can remember their previous encounter was not pleasant, then all of a sudden he shows up to the wedding and 5B indicates some kind of a better relationship with him, which is fine by me, but they've never actually shown it. That has fallen to me and Moments to recreate because A&E seem unwilling to attack it. Shall we see what I can do with it here and in MD&U?**

 **Thank you, Teresa Martin, Carlyle23, Fox24, Grace5231973, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, and Ladybugsmomma for your awesome reviews. I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the chapters to come! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	10. Paying the Price

Her father didn't stay long, he couldn't, he informed her. "I'm…meeting someone for dinner," he commented as she walked him to the door. That pronouncement, the way he'd said it, it was enough to stop her in her footsteps.

"Meeting someone? A-a woman?" she questioned.

Her father stopped by her side and looked her over timidly as if judging her reaction. "Are you angry?" he inquired.

She was silent for a moment, and it wasn't until she saw his face fall that she finally forced the breath out of her lungs and shook her head. "No! No, of course, I'm not angry! Surprised! But not angry. Papa…that's…that's great!"

"I don't want you to think too much of it for now. It's just a customer I've gotten to know over the years, but it's good…and…"

"Papa," she smirked, because she'd never seen him so dumbstruck in all her life or at least not since her mother had died. "It's a good thing," she assured him before reaching up to hug him. "You deserve to be happy."

It was odd. How could it not be? She missed her mother, still loved her mother more than anything, and her memories of her mother and father together made it difficult for her to picture her father sitting down even to eat dinner with another woman! But she knew that her memories of her mother were not the same memories her father had. And she knew that if her mother could speak she would be happy for him. She would want him to live again, to love again as he once had. If this woman was a passing fling or something more, he deserved whatever it was that she offered. Though she was happy that he chose to tell her now, instead of letting her discover it later on. She wasn't quite sure she was ready to meet her yet. That might take some time.

Still, after he left, she found herself shaking her head and smiling. Rapunzel and her father both…it must have been in the air. She sighed as she looked into the back room and her smirk faded. Part of her wished it was in the air. Part of her wasn't sure if falling like that would be good for her. Want and need…she wished this wasn't so confusing.

The bell to her shop chimed again. It seemed like it had done nothing but chime all day! But luckily for her, most of the visits had been pleasant. This one was no different. "Robin!" she sighed with relief as he stepped inside with Roland and Regina. She reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck despite the unhappy feelings she had just under her skin.

"I'm fine," he insisted. "Thank you for your help."

Her help?! She'd hardly done anything but the research! So…

She pulled away and looked at Regina, who held Roland in her arms. "What happened?" she questioned.

Regina shook her head and looked the small boy over. "I was going to ask you, actually," she stated handing Roland over to Robin. He took the boy and told her he'd wait outside for her, then reached out, squeezed her shoulder and smiled, before turning to leave. He didn't want to stay? Was it that bad? Or was it just because Roland was there with them?

"What happened?" she asked again when they were gone.

"I'm not really sure," Regina answered stepping further into the shop and folding her arms over her chest. "When we got there a boat was already on the water and the Fury was taking something from Robin. I stepped forward to offer myself for Robin and felt…draining," she explained. "It's hard to describe. But then…it lessened. And lessened. And lessened and lessened. And then…there was breath again. The fury disappeared and when I looked up the boat and the man was gone. Mary Margaret, David, Leroy, and Arthur…they were all with me…holding hands and looking like they were just as stricken as I was. Gasping for breath, unable to stand…I haven't got the faintest idea what to make of it. It's all a blur!"

What she was describing…she knew logically what it sounded like, but she just didn't know if it was possible magically. It seemed plausible, but she'd need to do more research in order to understand!

"You know what this was…I can see it in your eyes," Regina muttered looking her over.

"I have a theory, nothing more," she admitted.

Regina nodded in encouragement. "Go on…"

She sighed. Was this what doctors felt like when they had to give diagnoses before knowing they were right?! It didn't feel right. "Well…the Fury requires a soul, a life force…perhaps what all of you gave for Robin was the equivalent of a soul or life force."

Regina was quiet for a moment, her eyes wide, looking at her like she was crazy before she shook her head in disbelief and asked "what kind of effects would that have on us?"

That was an excellent question that she also wasn't sure she had the answer to. Though if she had to hazard a guess, as she was certain Regina wanted her to do…

"Perhaps the loss of years," she suggested. "Maybe the average lifespan of a person divided among the five of you? But I can't be sure of that. There won't be any way to prove that without time."

"Without seeing if we die young you mean," Regina questioned.

She didn't exactly want to say it as crudely as that but now that Regina had, yes that was exactly what she meant. And now that it had been said and laid out between the two of them, now that the look on Regina's face had changed she could tell that she hadn't been as clueless as she'd thought she was. She'd suspected this from the beginning, and she'd just wanted someone else to confirm it for her. And now that she had…why was Regina smirking? Why was her smirk growing into an outright smile?

"We might live a few less years…but it's a lot of years we have together that we wouldn't have if we hadn't given them."

The sentence disturbed her. What she'd said was true, obviously, but the meaning behind it wasn't a fact it was a matter of opinion. Regina was saying it was worth it. And it might have been…for her.

"Would Mary Margaret and David agree with that statement?" she questioned staring her down.

The look on Regina's face fell as she realized what she'd said. She looked out the window to where Robin held Roland in his arms, and the two appeared to be having a conversation of some kind.

"I want you to know I really am going to tell them what happened between us," she stated after a minute. "But you should also know that I meant what I said earlier. I'm sorry I didn't give you the opportunity you wanted to help me. And I'm sorry that I had to take your memories-"

"But you don't regret it," she finished for her.

"No," she answered after a moment. "I'd do it all over again if it meant that I could save him. I'd go to hell and back to make sure he's safe from Zelena. But...you also need to know that I would never have killed you. I threatened to…but I never actually planned on doing it."

She doubted that. The truth was right there in what she said! Regina had never planned on killing her. But what if things hadn't turned out the way she'd hoped? What if Rumple hadn't gone after her heart; if he really hadn't cared? What if he had called Zelena? And if Zelena had slain Robin or even Roland out of spite, before Regina could save them? Of course, that hadn't happened because Rumple had folded as planned, because he loved her…

But still…if he hadn't done as expected, would she still have honored her "plan" and not crushed her heart out of anger for Rumpelstiltskin? The woman that had kidnapped her, locked her in a tower for years, then an asylum for decades? Yes…she had her doubts.

"Listen…Granny is reopening for dinner tonight, and everyone is getting together for dinner on her. You should come with us."

She shook her head and stepped away from her. "I'm not really hungry," she excused.

"It's not really about whether you are hungry or not. It's about getting out of this shop, spending time with someone who isn't unconscious for a couple of hours."

She figured as much. That was the problem. When it came right down to it, she wasn't sure that she wanted the company they offered over the silence Rumple offered. Though neither was listed in her preferred evening plans, this seemed better somehow.

"I think I'll pass," she concluded once more.

Regina was quiet for a few moments, so quiet for a moment she wondered if she'd magically decided to poof herself out of the shop. But then she heard the sound of her shoes on the wood behind her. "When I say 'I meant what I said before', I meant all of it. I understand if you never want to speak with me again and can't trust me again. I can live with that. I've lived with worse frankly. But don't punish the others because of what I did. I'm going to tell them what I did, you have my word and I know that doesn't mean much to you right now, but it is the truth. For your own sake…don't turn away from the others because of what I did. It's not good for either of us…"

Her jaw was set as she finally heard Regina turn to leave. She was angry…but oddly enough it wasn't at Regina. She was angry at herself. Even after Rumpelstiltskin she was too soft-hearted and forgiving. But…she could remember leaving Storybrooke what felt like only days ago and thinking that she needed to find some semblance of the person she'd been before Rumple had crushed her heart and broken her soul. Maybe her soft-heartedness and forgiveness was part of that. She wasn't ready to trust Regina yet, she wasn't ready to ever be as gullible as she once was, but she could learn to live with a lot too. It was going to be impossible to avoid her considering how closely tied they were together, and it certainly would be smart considering what they were both capable of offering the group.

The worth of a price…

Her feelings were not worth the good they could do together. Tonight proved it.

"Regina!" she called before she could get to the door. "What happened between us…it's private. It should stay between us," she allowed sadly.

She really was too forgiving.

* * *

 **And you thought the last chapter had some serious foreshadowing! There was a whole lot of it in this chapter! Usually, I'm not one for that kind of thing, but sometimes I cannot help it, and it just comes out. For the record I wasn't really going for full on forgiveness in this chapter, I just wanted to get Belle and Regina back to that "we can put our issues aside for the good of the town" because they both do have great qualities necessary for the group. If there is tension it makes things even more difficult.**

 **Thank you, Fox24, Grace5231973, Curly J, Carlyle23, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma for the comments you left on the last chapter. I appreciated it! 5x02 is not done just yet; obviously, there's another chapter to come and with any luck you'll enjoy it, even if it is predictable. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	11. Fighting the Good Fight

In all fairness she hadn't planned on going to Granny's opening, but after Regina had gone she realized there really wasn't much point to staying in the shop much longer. She watched as the lights in the library turned off and the lights in the apartment lit up. Rapunzel had gone to bed. Her father was probably out with his new friend. Robin was safe. Emma was still…Emma! And she certainly didn't expect to stay in this shop for the rest of the night! She was tired, staying here all night to translate the book she had wasn't going to help that. And yet, she didn't want to go back home to an empty house either. And so all she could really do was go back to the B&B.

She checked Rumple one last time. She placed her hand over his chest and then forehead, uselessly stroking his unmoved hair, then concluded his status hadn't changed. "I'll be back in the morning," she informed him. "Until then I'm just at Granny's."

He didn't respond.

She found a blanket that they'd once used to keep warm on a cool night, just after Elsa had come to town, and lay it over him. It was silly, she knew. He'd been laying there all day, there was no need to cover him at night! But it made her feel better, like this way there was some semblance of night and day in his dark life. So she covered him, wished him a good night and told him that she'd see him in the morning, then left for the B&B.

No, in all fairness she really hadn't planned to take Regina up on her invitation and go to the diner, but when she entered the B&B, before she could even take her room key out of her pocket, the noise from down the hall reached her ears. She looked to the staircase and then back to the hallway, and finally down at her fogged over rose.

Too soft-hearted. Too forgiving. Too curious. Was there ever a time that she really considered these good qualities?

Granny's was busy when she finally poked her head in. And it was clear that there were two sets of people there.

The happy ones. Those that she was fairly unfamiliar with, who seemed excited that Granny's was back and open for business.

And then there were the scarred.

A few people in strange clothing that she felt as though she'd seen only yesterday…and probably had. People from Camelot. With them, were familiar faces she did recognize. Mary Margaret, David, Henry, and of course little Neal all sat together in one little booth. Robin Hood, Regina, and Roland sat in another. And in the one closest to her, the dwarves sat, with their friend Sneezy still encased in stone. Still part of their troupe no matter what; it made her smirk. And when Robin caught her eye from his place across from Regina, he smiled back, with a gentle nod she took to be gratitude. No matter what happened between her and Regina, she hoped that she and Robin would always be friends. Maybe that was a perk of choosing not to acknowledge Regina's deceit.

Their gaze broke when Robin turned to grab Roland who was hanging over the seat to stare at little Neal. Her eyes wandered and finally settled over the one person in the diner that didn't fit into any group. He wasn't from Camelot. He wasn't happy. He wasn't scarred.

He was grieving.

Killian sat alone at the counter, drinking something she could only assume was ale or beer or rum directly out of the flask. Drowning sorrows in alcohol because of a Dark One…why did that seem familiar?

She couldn't remember telling her legs to move, only that one minute she was looking into the diner and the next she was right next to Killian. "You know, uh…Granny'll give you a glass if you ask," she commented setting her bell jar down on the counter and taking a seat next to him.

Killian didn't respond, instead he just stared ahead, holding onto his flask like it was a lifeline in the storm. It was alright. He didn't need to say anything, he didn't even need to look at her! Not only was it written all over his face but she'd been there herself. Things hadn't gone as he'd hoped with Emma.

"You tried to kiss her?" she assumed.

"Aye," he growled so low it was little more than a breath. "She didn't even flinch," he finished as he took another drink from his flask.

Again, the words were unnecessary. The darkness in his eyes and experience told the rest of the tale. But dark as his eyes were they were not as cold and emotionless as Emma's had been the night before. Quite the opposite actually. And that said more than his words ever could.

"I'm sorry," she muttered, words that she knew wouldn't help anything, not with the despair he'd be feeling at this point. Still, she also knew that it was important that she say them because she was sorry. She'd been there before and knew how important it was to know that he wasn't alone in all of this.

"It's not over," Killian insisted despite his tone. "I spent over a century trying to find a way to kill the bloody crocodile, I can spend at least that long trying to save the woman I love."

She tried to offer a smile but it faltered before it could fully develop. "Yeah…" she mumbled in response.

Where had she heard that before? He may as well have been echoing her own thoughts nearly a year ago. It was all so odd to her, being in this position, where she was now. She felt like she was talking to herself suddenly, hearing just how truly naïve she'd been! Had she really sounded like that once upon a time? Had she really believed that she had all the time in the world to help Rumpelstiltskin? Had she ever really believed that if she used that time wisely she'd break his curse? That he'd want to break it for her? Exchange ultimate power for happily ever after? It was tragic how fast "happily ever after" had come for them.

 _"No one says it has yet."_

She shook Neal's voice out of her head. No, it wasn't "no one" who had said happily ever after had come and gone. It was Rumple. Maybe he hadn't used those words, but the moment he'd told her his desire for the "everything" she could never remember them wanted, she felt as though that was exactly what he'd said.

 _"And now that he's not cursed anymore? Who says this isn't a beginning?"_

She shook her head again and looked around for Granny before asking for two glasses. She knew it wasn't Neal in her head. Only her; her thoughts disguised as his. And that was what she found truly confusing. Want and need. She had no idea what she wanted or what she needed. But she wished she did. She wished it was as simple as waking up tomorrow and having the answer plain and simple in her head, no thinking or thought process involved! She wished she could wake up tomorrow and have it be months ago, that she would have recognized his lies and forced him to talk about what was panicking him, that he would confess his plans to her and ask for help!

She wished she could wake up and be as naïve as she'd once been. But the truth was that she couldn't. And where she went from there was a mystery to her.

Finally Granny set two glasses before her and Killian. "Buy me a drink?" she asked glancing at his flask.

Killian paused before tipping the thing into his mouth again. Then, after a quiet moment or two he nodded. "To those of us in the light, who are crazy enough to love the Darkness," he sighed reaching forward and pouring the liquid into the glass between them.

She accepted his tribute, at least on the outside she accepted it and allowed them to touch their glasses together and drank, because she knew that he needed that acceptance right now. But deep down she rejected it. There was a time she thought she was light. There was a time she thought she was smart and kind and loving and good. Now she knew that she wasn't, at least not completely.

People weren't good or bad, it wasn't black and white as so many believed. Everyone had bad in them somewhere. It was just a matter of how much they chose to give into it. She didn't want to give into the Darkness inside of her; she wanted to be good, a true hero! Why couldn't he fight as she did?

So when she set her glass down and let the liquid burn her throat she was happy to see Killian pour more for the two of them. "To fighting the good fight for those we love," she suggested instead. Killian nodded, they both raised their glasses, and happily drank to that.

They'd barely swallowed when there was a strange sound behind her and a gasp that led to happy cheers. Over her shoulder, she saw a wonderfully unexpected sight. The sound was Sneezy, fully human again, and sneezing just as he'd meant to before Emma had frozen him! The joyful sounds were his brothers, suddenly happy he was truly back.

She felt a smile curve slowly into her mouth. Even the toughest hearts of stone could be healed. Could his?

Could hers?

* * *

 **I'm sorry this chapter was so short, but there really wasn't a whole lot I could do with it. Seen scenes are kind of difficult to add onto as I'm constrained by the episode itself. But don't give up, there is more to come and at this point I'm already beginning to set up those awful scenes in 5x10! Can you see how?**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Carlyle23, Teresa Martin, Fox24, and Ladybugsmomma for your reviews! I'm so happy that ya'll are with me in this! Your encouragement keeps me going when these fictions get tough to write, and it's always nice to get that reminder that where the story went isn't my fault! Ya'll are awesome! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	12. Resisting Failure

The villain version of Emma was confusing. On the one hand, she'd attacked Robin, or at the very least hadn't done anything to stop the fury from attacking Robin, but after that, things had been quiet in Storybrooke. So quiet it was eerie. There were oddities of course, but the oddities were…well…odd! They didn't make sense for the Dark One.

The people of Camelot were still camped out in the woods and so far the only thing of significant loss was Arthur's sword, Excalibur itself. But when asked if it had any power, if there was any reason that Emma might want it he couldn't think of anything. According to David, the only significant thing about Excalibur was that Merlin had once prophesied that the person to pull the sword from the stone would rule Camelot. As a boy, Merlin had come to Arthur in his dreams and given him instructions that led him to seek out Excalibur and pull it forth from the stone. But there was no power to it, at least not in this realm, not in any place other than Camelot! It didn't make sense for Emma to want it under those circumstances.

And that wasn't even the oddest thing.

Emma had crashed a birthday party celebration for Doc. Apparently, it was a special birthday for him…or all the dwarves…she hadn't exactly been clear on the story of exactly who's birthday it was, she could have sworn she heard one of them mention something about an egg…but despite her confusion the dwarves planned for an entire week after they were back and invited everyone they could think of to the birthday party. "It'll raise your spirits!" Leroy insisted as he handed her an "invitation"-a beer stein engraved with "Docktoberfest". She'd been delighted at the thought but a glance back through the curtains at Rumple…

"Maybe next time," she'd muttered.

"Come on," he'd insisted. "You can't waste your life away here."

"I'm not!" she'd happily informed him. "I had lunch with my father this afternoon and I'm having dinner with Rapunzel tomorrow, everything is perfectly balanced…so long as I stay here for this party. Next year Leory, you have my word."

"I'll hold you to it," he'd finally dismissed.

But the party wasn't to be, and it was all because of Emma. The day before the party and most of the night the dwarves had worked diligently to set Granny's up as a German Bier Garten to celebrate. Apparently, in broad daylight, Emma had crafted an isolated earthquake strong enough to destroy it all. Hours to create, seconds to destroy. And for no reason that she could think of.

It was confusing.

For the last week and a half, Emma was so…quiet most of the time. And when she did do something it was something little, that injured no one, and left everyone scratching their heads. She didn't understand it.

But she was trying to.

The book, the one that she'd been spending every free moment translating; she was beginning to think that it was the key to everything. It told quite the tale! There were pieces missing, of course, basic pieces like who wrote it, why it was written, where the other volumes were, and why this was the only one that had survived, but nevertheless she was beginning to put it together. It was a man that had written the journal; she believed that now. The way his mind worked, the way it was written, how the words flowed…there was nothing feminine about it. And he had magic. A great deal of magic if the writings were any indication, he was constantly experimenting with it and documenting it, and he was teaching it to someone else. A boy by the tone of it, the word that she hadn't been able to identify that first day…she still wasn't able to identify it, but when she inserted her own word, "student", for it everything continued to fit. So there was a protagonist, magic, and a student. All that was left was the love story and antagonist and they were both easy to find.

Nimue. The name was all over the writings and judging by the gender of the articles and pronouns it was a "she". Nimue was clearly the writer's object of desire and motivation. But she wasn't around; she'd managed to put that much together. Before this volume had even begun Nimue had been taken away. The exact details were difficult to pin down, partially because the language was old and taking her a lot longer to translate than she'd originally planned. But also because the details were not really there. Obviously, the individual writing hadn't been writing for a crowd, he'd been writing for himself and saw no reason to spell the situation out for her. The way he talked-or wrote she supposed-it was confusing. Sometimes the writings indicated that Nimue was dead, other times it was as if she'd simply been kidnapped and was being held hostage somewhere, and every once and a while hope appeared in the writings as the writer hoped that her soul was still…"saveable" was roughly the word used. The only thing she could discern from that was that even knowing what had happened to her the writer had little to no idea of her fate. If she was dead, if she was alive…

But there was good news to all of this. Who had taken the young lady from him? That was also clear. The antagonist. It had taken her a while to figure out that it was something more than just an odd participle, she'd mistranslated it in the beginning but after the phrase "the one who is Dark" kept appearing, capitalized, as if it were a name…she caught on and realized it was more than a physical or even mental description. It was spiritual. It was a name. "Dark One," she'd whispered when she finally figured it out.

The enemy, the one who had kidnapped Nimue, the being that the writer had been fighting with all this time, that he was arming his "student" against…it was The Dark One.

And as for the writer…she didn't want to make assumptions, but the more she read and studied and translated, the more she came to find that her suspicions might be realized. After all, what was a student if not an Apprentice?

She was on to something; she could feel it. They might have been stalled with Emma but with this, she was making progress! Slow progress. But progress all the same.

Progress that came to a grinding halt six days after what would have been Doc's birthday party.

It had been two weeks since the incident involving the Furies and she woke up in Granny's, just as she always did, rested but hardly fresh, and cast her eyes over to the bell jar, but instead of being foggy and melting at her thought she found it already clear. And as for the rose inside…

"Oh no!" she'd gasped as she realized that petals had fallen in the middle of the night. There was less than a handful left. And without further ado she'd quickly flung the covers off of her, dressed, and run down the street to the pawn shop. He didn't look any different, didn't feel any different than he had the day before! But if the rose was any indication then he was worse. Much worse. Deathly worse. And the way the rose was no longer fogged, the way it appeared to her the entire time seemed like a blaring warning, like a siren telling her that something bad was about to happen and she should stay tuned for details.

The journal, Emma, Robin…suddenly they were all far from her mind. Rumple was close to death. And this was the moment, the moment that she'd been dreading, the moment that she would sit by his bedside and hold his hand and cry because he was about to go and she didn't want him to be all by himself.

She sat down on the chair next to him and reached for the hands that were folded over top of his chest and put her other against his forehead, rubbing his hair back as she watched his sleeping, unmoving face. "We can't do this without you, I can't do this without you, please…please don't do this. Please stay with me," she cried.

 _"Odd how you don't know what you want until it's almost gone."_

She bit her tongue because her first instinct, for the first time that she could remember, even when he was alive, was to tell Bae to shut-up. Comments like that weren't helpful, and they didn't make her feel better. Neal had always told her the truth, but this time, the truth was cruel. It only seemed to mock her and her failure.

 _"What failure? Failure indicates attempt. What have you attempted?"_

She opened her mouth but found that she had nothing to say to that. It was true. She hadn't done anything, not yet. In fact, she'd done the opposite of doing something. She'd gone to Camelot, she'd sat by his bedside, she'd translated the mysterious journal…she hadn't done anything for this. And that was about to change now…

"You may be willing to give up on yourself but I'm not!" she declared before rising, and for the first time since they'd arrived, getting in her car and driving to the one place she was certain might be able to help.

"He's dying!" she stated when she finally found Mother Superior at the convent.

"Belle, I already told you-"

"No! There must be something that you can do, a preservation spell, a healing spell, something!"

"If it's his time-"

"It is _not_ his time!" she screamed before she could finish that thought. Silence fell around her as she felt every eye in the small hall the sisters were using for breakfast turned to her.

Mother Superior didn't flinch. She simply glanced around and made a motion with her arm that told the women to continue with their business. "I've already told you," she whispered taking her by the arm and leading her out of the assembly. "We can't get involved when the matter is life or death. I have to allow nature to take its course no matter what that is or who decides to interfere."

"But-"

"Belle!" she gasped, the hand she had on her elbow tightened and her gaze was steady and deliberate. "Listen very carefully when I say this to you… _we_ can't get involved when the matter is life or death, as fairies, _we_ are bound by a law that _you_ are not and must allow nature to take its course no matter _who_ interferes."

She breathed because the shock of it all finally cleared her mind and she understood what Mother Superior had just said. "You're saying that I can do something that you can't," she translated.

"Your words…. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to call the sister in charge of our magical library away from her post for exactly three hours. I hope that no one investigates while she's busy."

Mother Superior walked away without another word and left her with an idea. Magic. The fairies couldn't use it to save him; they couldn't get involved. But she could. Why hadn't she thought of this before?! She'd used his magic time and time again why hadn't she thought to use it for something like this? Rumple wasn't magic anymore, but his magic still remained. There were items all over the shop, not to mention his black bag that still had the magical golden thread she'd often used to create magic for herself! And then there was her library, the private stash of books that Rumple kept stocked away in the basement, and the few at the shop!

The fairies magical library! The one they kept guarded because of the rarity and power that the magic inside of it possessed! It was where she and Hook had found, or rather been given, the book of ritual that contained the spell to break the Apprentice out of the hat.

And Mother Superior was going to remove the sister guarding it for three hours.

Suddenly the world that had once been turned on its head seemed to right itself as a path appeared for her.

"Thank you, Neal," she breathed as she secured her rose and walked off in the direction of the library.

He was right; it wasn't failing until she tried something. She wasn't going to let Rumple go without a fight.

* * *

 **Alright, there are a couple of things to explain here. The first was just taking advantage of something we never saw. Way back when, actually about this time last year, pictures were released of Granny's dressed up as a German Bier Garten and according to those at the set said Emma who was the Dark Swan at the time, walked up and destroyed it. Supposedly they ended up deleting that little bit because it didn't fit anymore or some other reason. But when I heard Belle say "Docktoberfest" in 5x03 I began to put a way to use both scenes together. So if that little bit sounded familiar, that could be why. Second, the timing. Yes, I have two weeks pass by here, why? Ugh...because I really had no choice. It was a title card, one stupid little title card from 5x08 in Camelot, the day they go back to Storybrooke. "Three weeks earlier." That's it. That's what killed me. When I examined the timeline, further there really was no other place to put that time than here. There are a few indications that time could pass between 5x02 and 5x03, but after 5x03 it appears that things go day by day again. So I added two weeks, I had to, you have my apologies.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Ladybugsmomma, and Teresa Martin for your reviews on the last chapter. I'm happy to have you reading! Now get ready because the next few chapters are among my favorites. Get ready ya'll, we're going to get a whole lot of Research!Belle, a whole lot of magic, and some good Belle/Neal conversations! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	13. Using What She Knew

It took her nearly twenty-four hours and another rose petal to figure out an answer.

The Fairy Library was a dead end as far as she was concerned. She'd looked around, but the languages and information were so random and overwhelming she worried it might take too long to find an answer that she might be able to find somewhere else in half the time. If all else failed then she'd be back, but she was determined to look elsewhere first.

So she shut herself away in the back room of her library and looked through every spell book that mentioned healing. She flipped through page after page of useless unhelpful facts. "How to heal a burn", "How to cure disease of the blood", "How to ease the mind", "How to lift a curse of the flesh", "How mend broken bones overnight." No, no, wrong problem, wrong curse, just…all wrong."

There was a cure for everything physical but this wasn't physical, she was certain. His breathing was fine, his heart had yet to change, he wasn't feverish with infection, or fatigued from weakness. It was his soul. His soul was scarred. That wasn't a physical or mental issue. It was spiritual.

She locked her back room and for the first time in nearly two months she drove home. The house was dusty and the air was stale from being closed off for so long over summer months no less! Her skin itched to pick up a rag or a broom and start cleaning…but she ignored it and instead set off for the basement. He wasn't magic anymore, but his magic did remain. The doorknob got hot and then cool again when it recognized her touch. Her stomach turned. Would Emma know about this place? Was it safe?

She hesitated but when she glanced down at her rose, clearly dying, close to death, then whether or not Emma knew about this place, it was a risk that she was just going to have to take. She tugged the door open, stepped down into the cool basement, and looked around. It appeared intact! The books, the wheel, the vials of strange liquid, it was all still there. And ordinarily she might have taken a moment or two to be excited about that. But she just couldn't this time around.

She set her bell jar on the table and began looking through books. She started with the books on healing and medicine but found they were not nearly as helpful as she'd hoped. So she moved into looking at some of the books that mixed medicine and Dark Magic. They were the same books she'd used when they'd been searching for a cure for the Spell of Shattered Sight what felt like eons ago.

She spent hours looking through those books. It wasn't as easy as flipping through pages. When Dark magic like this was involved reading had to be done carefully. A few times she'd been onto something: "A spell to cure an infected mind", "A spell to awaken one in eternal sleep", even "A potion to help those in darkness find light" seemed to lead somewhere. But the more and more she thought about it, the more she read, the more she came to find that the spells simply wouldn't work. His mind wasn't infected. He wasn't suffering from eternal sleep, his soul was supposed to be healing itself. And he needed far more than "help" to find light.

His soul needed healing. It needed to be restored. And after a long night of reading book after book, journal after journal, notebook after notebook she finally found something that gave her, what she felt, was her best chance. It was one of Rumple's and it wasn't exact, but it was the closest she could find. "Regeneration of a soul for one who has been possessed" he'd written across the top. _"It is impossible to restore a soul that has been lost. However, it is possible to regenerate and stimulate growth from what is left after the entity has departed."_

This was meant for a demon possession of some kind or…werewolf if the ingredients she was reading was any indication! But…what was the curse of the Dark One if not a demon possession that had taken part of his soul. It wasn't identical…but it was close enough. A few alterations and this might work.

 _"Might wake him up too. Are you ready for that?"_ Neal asked in her head.

That thought alone got her heart racing. Rumple on the cot. His eyes open. Looking at her. After everything…

Her mouth went dry. All she could picture was that moment. What came after was missing. There were no words, no actions, no accusations or deals made. Just his stare. Just his eyes.

No.

She wasn't ready for him to wake up. She had no idea what he'd say or what she'd do or where they'd go from there…but it was irrelevant.

He was dying. He was going to die if she didn't do this. If he died, then she'd never know what would happen beyond that moment, and she'd certainly never see his eyes again. She took a breath and tried to remember the determination she'd had months ago on the floor of his shop when the Apprentice told her he only "might" be saved. She'd been certain then. She didn't know what would happen, but she'd wanted to be there for him as he discovered who he was and healed. This was part of that. It had to be done.

It was nearly dawn the next day when she found the spell. She hadn't slept or really even eaten since she'd awoken to find the rose was dying a couple of days ago…and she couldn't stop now.

She looked over the spell and began making mental notes because in true Rumple fashion he hadn't written it out like most spells, with ingredients. It was just instructions. _Combine cypress chips, rose petals, sage, and silver shavings in one bowl and begin to burn. When the mixture is nearly ash add a representation of the demon (werewolf tooth) and the individual (hair) to break the connection and separate the entities. Once burned blow substance over the infected individual and allow a physical representation of the individual prior to infection (baby blanket) to be broken and destroyed over the body so the substance it creates can be absorbed and promote the growth of the former soul._

That was a mouthful, but after reading and rereading, she thought she had it. Of course, it was going to take some tweaking. It was meant for someone trying to rid themselves of Ruby's affliction. Rumple was already rid of his demon, she just had to work on his soul. Cypress chips, rose petals, sage, and silver shavings…she'd seen all those in the shop. She figured she could get rid of the part that called for the separation of the entities, though she'd add the hair just because it couldn't help to channel the magic a bit. But "physical representation of the individual prior to infection"…that was difficult. Rumple had obviously included in his notes the items that he'd intended to use for whoever he'd originally written this spell for. A baby blanket. So…something that had belonged to the individual before they'd been infected. And "physical"…something that the individual had touched then. There was the problem.

Rumple had been the Dark One for centuries. Part of becoming the Dark One had been to shed who he'd been before that, a person he hadn't looked back on kindly. What would he have kept from that part of his life?

Well…there was always Neal's baby blanket. It would have been Neal's but he'd held onto it far longer than Neal had. She hated the idea of it, though. Whatever the item was that she used would be destroyed, would he be able to forgive her if she destroyed something that precious?

He'd have to live with it. Better learn to live with it than not live at all. And it wasn't as though he didn't need her forgiveness either. Though…now that she thought about it…she couldn't remember the last time she'd seen Neal's blanket. Before they'd gone back to the Enchanted Forest, that was certain. How many curses ago was that? Where could it be now?

Was there anything else?

She sat there and racked her brain. She wandered throughout the house and thought back to her time in the castle, to the time she and Neal had spent in their little house he'd originally owned...she thought of a few things. The cane he'd needed that she'd seen in the castle once or twice. The spinning wheel that he'd kept in the house. The doll that he'd had as a child, he'd told her once that his father had given it to him.

However, she couldn't find any of those things.

Not one. She knew where they'd been before the curse. His cane…well…in all fairness she'd never seen that here. Or the spinning wheel for that matter. And she'd seen the doll at the shop, but only one time before it disappeared from their lives. But the blanket, the one thing she kept coming back to, it had been all over the place. So where could it be now?

The shop. That was as good a guess as any. Everything that her eyes seemed to fall on here she either couldn't locate or had seen in the castle. The sad thing was that anything she'd seen in the castle was something that he'd brought with him from his other life, and she might never know it. At any point in time, she could come across something that touched him, and she'd never know it.

Still, she couldn't try everything. And even more, she couldn't "break and destroy" just anything over his body. No. It had to be small, burnable. The blanket and the doll, those were her best chances. And her best chance for finding them was in the shop.

* * *

 **Pretty straight forward, but also a straight up Research!Belle chapter. And if you are not satisfied with that, then don't worry, we've got more coming up in the next few chapters. Really, I'd just call all these chapters the missing chapters of Research!Belle.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, Ladybugsmomma, Carlyle23, and Kathryn Claire O'Connor, for the reviews you left me. I'm glad that no one was terribly upset with the timeline stunt I had to pull. I'm excited to hear what you all have to say about these next few chapters! I can't wait to more forward! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	14. Easier and Faster

She gathered up the book and her bell jar, then ran upstairs. She was about to pack a bag of clothes since she was running out at Granny's when she remembered that she didn't have to pack anything because she'd already packed. A suitcase was missing and she knew that it was the one in the trunk, the one she'd planned on taking with her to New York City on their honeymoon. She had yet to take it out of the trunk because it had been too painful.

It was still painful. The idea of going back and finally removing it made her want to cry because it reopened so many old wounds of what would have been. If only…

She couldn't think about that now. The bag was there, and it was packed, and she couldn't waste time packing another one, spending another moment thinking about her own needs. The dying rose in the bell jar called to her every second her eyes strayed from it. She needed to get this done.

She drove back to the shop as fast as she possibly could. Rumple was still there, looking just the same as though nothing had happened in the last two months, as though his soul wasn't dying…

 _"Focus!"_ Neal cried in her mind.

Yes. She needed to focus. She couldn't even allow Rumple to distract her as she tried to help him. So she set her things on the counter, and began by looking through the safe, which she was sure was somehow linked to him because she swore that it never looked the same way twice. She was beginning to believe that just as the magic drawer in the back that produced clothes when needed, this safe produced whatever he needed on the spot…so long as it was in his possession of course. Neal's blanket, the doll, none of that was in there now. Some magic, a few important documents, and some cash was all she found.

Alright…so it wasn't in the safe. There were still plenty of other places it could be. She sat down on the floor behind the left counter and began looking through it item by item. She tracked items with the cards that she'd made an eternity ago, when she'd thought he was dead and Neal was still alive somewhere. Items that had history she dismissed because they'd clearly been brought to him and not the other way around. Items that didn't have history she looked over, tried to remember if she'd ever seen them before in the Dark Castle, and if she had then she weighed the possibility that it had been something he'd owned before he was the Dark One in her head. But each and every time she concluded it was useless. Rumple was more or less a pauper before the Dark Curse overtook him. He'd never be able to have afforded things like these and if he'd had them then he wouldn't have kept it; he'd have used it for food or clothes or toys for Bae as Neal had told her Rumple always made sure he was taken care of. Should she gamble? Try and use it?

No. She didn't have time to be wrong over and over again, or to figure out how to destroy items of metal and gems. The doll or the blanket or the cane. It had to be one of those items.

She jumped when the bell on the door rang. "Belle! Anyone home?" Regina cried.

"I'm here!" she called pushing herself up off the ground and locking the case more out of habit than fear. "I'm here, Regina, but I'm sorry I don't have time right now for-"

"That's okay I just need a quick opinion and…that doesn't look good…" Regina's voice dropped to despair as her eyes fell on the rose and didn't leave it.

"It's not," she agreed with her arms over her chest. She hadn't seen Regina since the night of the Fury and though they still weren't on good terms she knew there wasn't really time to fight with her or even work with her! Not that she wanted to work with her, but…if this worked, if she could get Rumple to wake up and live then she'd spend the rest of her life making sure that Regina had everything she needed if that was what was required of her! _"Desperate times call for desperate measures."_

"I'm sorry Regina I really have to work on curing Rumple, I can't help you-"

Suddenly Regina shuddered and pulled her eyes off of the bell jar. "I'll be quick. I just had one question for you-"

"Regina, I said-"

"Just look at this!" Regina insisted before she could argue, pushing a book she hadn't noticed in her hand under her nose. It was a specific page, with a picture of a toadstool and in the book itself was a small piece of parchment with a question mark written on it.

Against her better judgement, she sighed and looked it over carefully. Sometimes, when it came to Regina, it was easier to just go along with her than fight her. Easier and faster. "The uh…the Crimson Crown…"

"You know it! Have you seen it here in the shop?!" she demanded.

She shook her head. "No, of course not, it's a myth!"

"So are we according to half the books in your library," Regina growled, taking the book back and setting it on the counter between the two of them. "This book, it's one that I got from the diner, one of the books that came over with us from Camelot. And this…this is my handwriting! I think we were trying to use this in Camelot. I just can't figure out why or if we did for that matter."

She let out an irritated sigh and pulled the book closer to her. Honestly, she had better things to do than pay attention to myths! Especially when answers were right in front of Regina if only she'd read the book! She wasn't the only one in town capable of doing research! Killian or Robin Hood were well trained by her, why couldn't they have done it.

"The book says right here that it's supposed to help people communicate through magical barriers," she pointed out.

"Yes, but why would we need to communicate between magical barriers? Who were we trying to talk to? And…what do you make of this. _'Communication only possible when selected communication already established'_ I've never read a phrase like that before in my life, not in any spellbook I've read. Any thoughts on what it might mean?"

She shook her head as she read the sentence and then the paragraph that Regina was talking about. It was a confusing phrase. Why would communication need to be established if they needed to communicate? Or how for that matter?! But then why was any of this relevant?! The Crimson Crown was a riddle, nothing more than a myth! Wasn't it?

She shook her head again as she thought about it but just as she opened her mouth to respond her eyes landed on the copy of the journal lying on a nearby counter and only one name filled her mind. Who would they have been trying to communicate with? Maybe the only person who mattered in Camelot, the one who had been missing for centuries.

"Maybe we were trying to talk to Merlin," she suggested.

"And what was the barrier? Air?"

She gave another frustrated sigh and reached out to close the book. She really didn't have time for sarcasm. "Did you talk to Mary Margaret and David? Maybe they can help you."

Regina shook her head. "I showed it to them but apparently Emma stole one of the dwarves axes' and disgruntled dwarves are their territory not mine."

"Wait, wait…an axe? Emma stole an axe?!" she blanched. "Wh-why would Emma steal a dwarf axe? She's the Dark One would could she possibly need a dwarf axe for that she can't do on her own?"

"Ordinarily, I'd ask your husband but seeing as he's out of commission…" Regina said, gesturing toward the clear bell jar and dying rose.

The dying rose. She really should get back to work. But…

Excalibur, Doc's birthday party, a curse, the fury, and now the axe?! What was Emma planning? She shook her head and silently apologized to Rumpelstiltskin for the delay, but suddenly she figured that it was the most necessary thing in the world. If Rumple lived or if he died they would still need to know about Emma. And if Regina wanted to busy herself with this then it wouldn't hurt to give her something to work with. If anything it might help her so that she could get back to Rumple.

"I have to show you something," she breathed moving over to the leather book she'd been studying. "There is something special about this book, something unique about it."

"You mean besides the language?

"I think this is a journal and...I think it's Merlin's."

Regina's eyes widened. "You're joking," she growled.

"I can't be sure," she clarified quickly. "He wasn't writing for an audience, he was writing for himself, possibly for his student. He was a boy at the time; he wouldn't have needed details, he was living it. The author never names himself but…the more I read it the more I feel like it might actually be Merlin and if it is…The Dark One is all over this volume!"

"Volume?"

She nodded. "The book just picks up in the middle of a narrative, and I can only assume that there were volumes that came before. And in this, he never mentions how he met the Dark One but it's pretty obvious that the Dark One has been around for a long time by the time he wrote this volume and that he was out of control but that still wasn't the greatest reason that Merlin-or this author-was hunting him.

"It was love."

"Love?"

"The details are hard to make out, again it's clear that it happened in another volume of these books but from what I've been able to piece together the Dark One took someone he loved. It's difficult to understand; the language suggests uncertainty. Sometimes he's sure she's dead, others he talks as if he's certain she's still alive. He fears fully defeating the Dark One with death for her sake. I figure that the Dark One must have kidnapped her and held her for ransom in an unknown location. The reason he was afraid to kill him must have been out of fear he would lose her forever."

"Does he get her back?" Regina questioned looking the book over with interest.

She shrugged. "I haven't finished yet and…I won't finish until Rumple…" She couldn't finish that sentence. She didn't want to picture the world without him. He wasn't going to die, he just wasn't, she was going to stop it. And she really had to get back to work.

"Regina-"

"Why did you tell me all this?" Regina demanded suddenly glancing up at her. "Why didn't you just kick me out and tell me to do it myself."

She rolled her eyes. "As if it was that easy to get rid of you," she suggested sarcastically. Regina didn't respond, just kept staring at her with determination and desperation. She wanted her answer. "At a certain point, it's just easier to give into you. And…just because I don't trust you doesn't mean I can't work with you. Besides…Emma doesn't deserve half a chance just because we're not speaking. Angry as I am with you I can put my issues aside for the greater good. But only for so long. Now if you'll excuse me, I really need to-"

"Yeah, you…you should keep working. I'll do what I can to get the others to give you some privacy." Regina gathered up her book and the small question mark before looking at the clear bell jar once more and nodding. "If anyone can figure out how to get him back, it's you. Good luck…" Regina muttered, then turned and walked out of the shop.

* * *

 **I liked this chapter not just because I love Research!Belle doing her thing, but I also felt like it bridged a gap. What irritated me about season 5 was that it seemed like a departure from the characters we know. For the last couple of seasons OUAT has built Belle and Rumple up as the magical go-tos for all things magical, and then all of a sudden this season they seemed to use neither Rumple nor Belle. I felt that a chapter like this continued to maintain a status quo for Belle, showing Regina running to her when she needed an opinion about magic, as well as showing respect for her and the knowledge and work she's put into it over the years. Also, it made me feel better because I'm sorry, but there was nothing stupider in Storybrooke 5A than the Crimson Crown thing..really, when you watch those scenes it makes very little sense.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Teresa Martin, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Ladybugsmomma, and Fox24 for your reviews. I'm happy that you feel this is adequately filling those blank spaces and giving us back some of what we felt we lost in season 5. I aim to please, and I am glad to hear that it's halfway decent! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	15. Interruptions in the Midst of Trial

She wanted so much to just focus on Rumple, to ignore everything that wasn't her husband or her rose or something that didn't belong to him! And yet people just didn't seem to understand. First Regina had burst in, then Henry, though she found that was at Regina's insistence. "Mom said something is wrong with Grandpa!" he'd exclaimed when he came inside. The concern had caught her off guard. She knew that he cared about him, not surprising, Henry's heart was nearly as big as hers had once been. Henry cared about everyone. Still, she couldn't quite get the necessary words out of her mouth. She wasn't sure she wanted them to come out. After all, what was she supposed to say? That he should say his good-byes? That if he had something to tell Rumple now was the time to do it?

No. She couldn't bear the thought.

"He's…he's not well, Henry. I'm doing everything I can to put together a spell that will heal his soul but Rumple…he just needs…encouragement. He needs encouragement not to let go! If you feel like it…if you want to…you might want to give him a reason to hold on."

Henry had nodded, and she'd given him all the privacy that she could. They deserved that time alone, grandfather and grandson. She hoped that this wasn't…

NO! No, no, no! This wasn't the last time that Henry was going to see his grandfather! It wasn't the last time they'd talk! He was going to wake up, and no matter what was going on with the two of them Henry was going to get his chance to fix their broken relationship as well! All she had to do was find something he'd touched hundreds of years ago…

She did her best to tell herself that it wasn't useless. "How is it that everything that belongs to everyone else manages to make it back here in the curse but your own things are cast into oblivion?!" she questioned aloud in the back room after Henry had left with a sullen face. The image was enough to sober her and remind her what she'd told to Henry. The last thing he needed was negativity. She had to be positive about all this and put her anger aside no matter how mature or childish that anger was.

"Don't worry," she breathed taking the seat by his side and reaching out to touch him. "I'm going to figure this out. You are going to be just fine Rumple. I'll fight for this so long as you will just…just keep fighting! Not just for me. For Henry and Neal too. They'd both be devastated if you…"

The word was like poison, so she sniffed back her tears and squeezed his hand before finally rising. "Hold on just a bit longer. I'll fix it. You'll live and then…then we'll figure out what comes next." She was determined to get back to work and keep looking…but in true fashion Granny had called. And also in true Granny fashion, when she called, she nagged.

"You didn't come back last night, I worried."

"No," she answered. "I was just busy. I found something in an old spell book to help-"

"What have you eaten in the last twenty-four hours?"

She shrugged as she sat down beside another counter and tried to think. She had eaten in the last twenty-four hours…hadn't she?

"Well don't answer all at once."

She sighed as she looked a ring over then glanced back into the back room at the ring he was currently wearing as his wedding ring. What were the chances he'd had that when he'd been human. "I've been busy," she breathed, shaking her head and turning back to the case for more ideas.

"No excuses," Granny argued. "Come by in an hour I'll have lunch ready for you."

"To go Granny," she insisted. "I don't have time to waste. Granny? Granny?!" But there was dead silence on the other end. The old woman had hung up on her. Really?!

She set her phone aside and shook her head with frustration. She loved Granny, her unique way of mothering-or grandmothering, she supposed-was usually something she liked and even felt like she needed…until times like today when she could sometimes get in the way. This wasn't the first time that she'd been busy, and Granny had insisted she stop to eat or sleep. Sometimes she found herself wishing Ruby was still around for selfish reasons, not just because she wanted her friend back, but because she knew that Granny longed to care for someone and now that Ruby was gone she really had no one else besides the lost boys and they didn't exactly need-

Work! She had to work she couldn't keep getting distracted with things like-

Visitors. She nearly cried when she heard the bell chime again. Regina, Henry, Granny, and now-

"David!" she exclaimed confused. Hadn't Regina said she was going to try and keep everyone away so she could work on Rumple? Henry she understood sending over. But David?! And…

"King Arthur…" she murmured looking the man over. It was like a dream. With the exception of a missing horse, he looked just has he had the moment she'd met him, for he few hours she'd watched him as they traveled through the woods on their way to Camelot that day. He was still dressed in chainmail? After all this time?

"I'm sorry…do we know each other?" he questioned looking her over.

"She went to Camelot with us," David provided. So Regina was right. There was a gap in their missing memories. Odd. But something that she could worry about that later. After her rose was looking more like a rose and less like a weed with petals.

"Ah! A pleasure!" Arthur exclaimed reaching forward for her hand. She gave it out of old habit and let him kiss her knuckles despite the fact that it gave her shivers. Was it just the frustration, the stress of Rumple that made her dislike them in her shop?

"I-um…I-I'm sorry David but Regina's already been in. I don't have the-"

"Ah this isn't about that actually," David interrupted.

Not about the Crimson Crown? "Is…is it about the axe? I don't know what Emma would want with it."

"Neither do we, but we're working on something different right now. Early this morning their reliquiery was broken into."

"I-it contained magical items of highest value, it's important we find it immediately," Arthur inserted quickly.

A magical reliquary…that could certainly be dangerous if it fell into the wrong hands. But fortunately the person that she would normally suspect first had an alibi. He'd been unconscious for the last two months. But someone else hadn't. "Emma?" she questioned. Was that why she'd wanted the axe?

But David only shook his head. "Doubtful. I think it was someone without magic. I'm hoping you can help us figure out who."

And with that any interest she had in what he was saying faded. She felt guilty for it, truly she did, but the truth was that if it wasn't in the hands of someone who was going to use it to curse them all into oblivion this very moment then she had other things that she needed to be doing. "I-I'm sorry but I'm not sure I can help you right now. I really need to keep working on Rumple," she insisted glancing into her rose. After a week-or two months she assumed-of checking it and finding it clouded, it was still so odd whenever she looked down and saw that it was crystal clear. Odd and unnerving.

"Of course," David nodded glancing down at the bell jar himself. "How's he doing?" David asked as the dying rose shimmered between them. Dying rose. There was no denying it, though she wished she could.

"Not well," she answered sadly, wondering how it was possible that it wasn't clear to him. Everyone really! Only a few more petals remained, didn't that say it all?

"Ah…I'm sorry," David muttered.

She nodded and accepted his grievances, but wasn't ready to accept defeat yet. Rumple needed to know that above all and she needed to do her best to keep her voice as upbeat and positive as possible. "But I-I found a healing spell in one of his old notebooks…" she informed David loudly enough that hopefully Rumple would hear. "And I've got everything put together except for one last ingredient! I ah…I need an object that touched him when he was still a man…before he became the Dark One," she explained running her eyes uselessly over the items in the one glass case she had yet to check. Still, one look was all she needed to know most of them weren't what he needed.

"Well you must have something," David said hopefully.

"Yeah, well nothing that I can find!" she pointed out angrily. Why did he have to be such a packrat?! "There's still more to look through though," she breathed trying to remember to keep her head cool. If she panicked she was more likely to miss something and if she started sounding angry or helpless then Rumple might choose to give up.

"Well you want me to get you some help?" David offered.

It was a kind offer, one she considered for a moment, until she remembered the moment Ariel came by and they'd had to search the shop for something that she didn't recognize. Help sometimes only made things more difficult.

"No…I mean, I'm the only one who knows this place, knows his things, and…I need to keep doing something," she admitted. At least being busy kept her from sitting at his bedside and weeping uncontrollably or yelling at him and pushing him even farther over the edge.

"Well…then we'll make this quick," David pointed out stepping up to the cabinet. She'd nearly forgotten that he and Arthur weren't here for a friendly chat or to catch up on Rumple. But so long as what they needed was quick she didn't mind. A few seconds, maybe a couple of minutes she could spare. She cast a glace to the rose, dying only a few feet away. She didn't have hours to waste. She doubted she had another day. "Has anyone come in to pawn anything today?"

"Especially a magic bean!" Arthur questioned quickly as David stepped up to the counter.

"A…a bean? No, no one's come in sorry," she shook her head. A magic bean? No…certainly not. If anyone came in with something like that she'd probably call them or Anton before buying it. That would be suspicious.

"Well it was worth a shot…" he sighed before hunching over the counter and looking at the items before him. David looked disappointed. She turned to examine the shelves behind her to hide her relief. If anyone did come in she wouldn't have accepted their business today. She had her own to take care of. And she hated to have to rush David out at a time like this with that kind of look on his face but-

"That's alright, you have something else I need. May I borrow this?"

She glanced over to see he'd picked up a chalice of…unimportance. It was fake. A metal that looked silver but was just pointless. It was the last thing she'd bought off of someone before Rumple's health failed. Happy had been all too happy to pawn it to her, probably because Doc hadn't stopped Leroy from dragging them off to Camelot and losing their memories. She wouldn't mind if it got lost. Rumple wouldn't either. Truth was that she'd bought it to get the dwarf out of her shop and get her privacy back. She couldn't imagine anyone ever wanting to actually buy it. They'd handed them out to everyone, she had her own stashed up in her room in Granny's for goodness sake!

"Uh…yeah-"

"Good… _this_ is going to point us right at our culprit!" David informed Arthur holding it up and showing it to him. She blanched at the thought. She hated to burst his bubble but if it was important then she didn't want him to suffer humiliation. What on earth did he think it was?!

"What is it?" Arthur demanded with desperate interest.

"It's not magic though!" she informed them quickly leaning against the counter again. "It's just a souvenir from Doc's Birthday party. It says…'Docktober Fest' on it," she pointed out.

"Oh, I'm…very well aware," David responded before glancing over at Arthur and confusing her even more. "Don't worry, I've got this!" he assured Arthur, reaching out and slapping his shoulder like a brother before running out of the store. Arthur glanced at her for a moment but she only shrugged. She didn't know what he was planning. And apparently, neither did he! Still, it didn't stop him from running out the door after him.

* * *

 **More and more interruptions. Alas, I couldn't help it though, I wanted Henry to go over there and see his grandfather, to worry about him when someone said he wasn't doing well. Other than that there is not too much to say about this chapter, it's yet another seen scene, as I call them.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Ladybugsmomma, Teresa Martin, Carlyle23, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, and Fox24 for your reviews on the last chapter. I'm happy to hear that I'm not alone and thought the Crimson Crown thing was ridiculous. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	16. A Place to Start Over

"If I were a Dark Sorcerer trying to keep my past a secret where would I hide it?" she asked herself as she looked around the back room. The only answer she came up with didn't exactly make her happy.

If she were the Dark One she wouldn't hide it, she'd shroud it in magic. And she was good with magic, but not so good as to know how to break a spell she couldn't even be sure existed! It could be hiding right beneath her feet and she'd never know it! Or would she?

Beneath her feet…

She glanced over at Rumple and let her eyes went wide as everything suddenly seemed so obvious she felt stupid. "You didn't make it that easy, did you?"

Without an answer she walked over to the cabinet by the door and found her chipped tea cup. No wonder she'd forgotten…it had been so long since she'd seen it, so long since she had wanted to see it. For a long time she'd kept it in the basement of their home along with all his other things because they were too painful to look at. It was just by chance one morning that she'd brought it back with her, and when she'd decided that she was being silly and sentimental over it, she'd stuck it in the cabinet for safe keeping. Out of sight…but somehow never out of mind. That was what people who tried to erase their past did. So why wouldn't Rumple?

She picked the teacup up and set it back down, only this time she set it in the saucer that matched it, the one she knew would make it become more than a teacup and saucer.

A golden glow shimmered off of it the moment that it touched the porcelain. It fell down like a waterfall and hovered for a moment before seeping into the wood planks; then a door appeared on the floor just as predictable as ever. She quickly dropped to her knees as she had only once before and pulled it up.

A smile spread across her face.

The last time she'd looked in this little cubby there had only been one thing of importance stored inside, that was probably why she hadn't thought of it earlier! It had been used to hide Pandora's Box and then their Grandson who they'd thought was Peter Pan at the time! But now it appeared to play host to a treasury of other items. His cane, the one that he used here, not in the Enchanted Forest before he was a Dark One was slid carefully inside so it fit. A lock of grey hair that she hadn't seen before was stashed inside. A small wooden box filled with needles and thread. Neal's baby blanket…and the blanket's salvation.

"The doll your father gave you," she smirked as she reached in and pulled it out. Obviously it did represent some sentimental value for him as he'd stored it here, but she knew that if she had to destroy something and the choice was between this doll and Neal's blanket…he'd want her to save the blanket. And so did she.

She removed the doll and replaced the door to the box and stood up with a smile. She'd done it. She'd actually done it! Now she could make the spell! "You're going to be just fine Rumple! I found everything to make it better!"

She set the doll aside on the table and moved across the room for his black bag to check the other things she needed. All there. Now all she needed was a half hour to make the spell and use the magic and…

Her stomach growled and contracted so much it hurt. She glanced at the clock. How long ago had she talked to Granny? It was tempting to ignore the feeling, after all she couldn't remember the last time that she'd eaten, she'd gotten this far without food, she could last another half hour, couldn't she?

 _"Yeah but what comes after that half hour? What happens when he wakes up? What happens if the spell needs time to work? You gonna sit here without food all day? Another day?"_

Good points. She glanced at the rose she'd set on the table and looked at what was around her: the ingredients, the doll, Rumple…

She could work while she ate. That was probably safest after all, the last thing she needed was to mess up this spell and be forced to use Bae's blanket as a second attempt because she'd been hazy with hunger and ruined the first!

"I'm going to be right back!" she decided putting the little corn husk doll in the black bag for safety and setting it aside. "I'm just going to go to Granny's, grab some lunch, and I can work on the spell, and in one hour…in one hour…"

She nearly tripped as her nerves frayed once more and fear took her over. In an hour his eyes might be open and he'd be facing her, awake. And then….

She sighed and sat down next to him on the cot, suddenly aware that it was the closest she'd sat to him for months. Her first instinct was to move, to pull away and sit back in the chair, a safe distance away because she'd never had this feeling before. Being close to him like this had never made her body tense in this way before.

But she stayed where she was. The situation they found themselves in, not this moment where he was asleep and she was awake trying to get him to wake up, but the situation they'd be in when they were both awake and face to face with their past…it wasn't going to be fun. They were both responsible for it now, she knew that. And as much as she wanted to assuage her guilt by putting together a point system so that she could prove he was more responsible than she was, she knew that she couldn't do that anymore. They both had work to do. They were both going to have to make themselves uncomfortable, admit things they'd rather not, and maybe even create more pain before comfort and peace returned. So she stayed where she was and let herself remain uncomfortable as she reached out and touched his hair and then placed her hand over his own.

"I don't want you to think that this is the end," she whispered as she suddenly realized that there were tears in her eyes. "I don't want you to think that…that waking you up and wanting you alive automatically means that things will be alright again, that we can go back to the way that things were four months ago, but…I am saying that this means we work on it. We take the good and we take the bad and we figure out our life because…because I do want us to have what we had again. It's just going to take time. So just…just give me time. Give us time."

She hesitated when she leaned forward for just a minute, but then figured she was already halfway there and kissed his cheek. For a moment, barely a second, when they were so close their noses nearly touched she wondered if she could fix him with a real kiss, a kiss of true love. But when her heart began to race she pulled away and rose from her place on the cot. It was probably for the better. If she had to question whether or not it would work, if she had to question their love then it probably wouldn't work. True love was certain as the sun rising in the east and what they had…it was far from certain right now.

"I'm going to Granny's," she explained allow wiping her eyes and moving the chair. "I'll just pick up my lunch and be right back to start the spell and then maybe tomorrow we can have lunch at Granny's together. A couple of burgers and teas…just like we used to. That's where it starts."

Eyes clean, stomach tightening, heart pounding, she grabbed her bell jar and set off for lunch.

* * *

 **And so she finally finds the stuff! Did anyone see that coming? I was hoping to keep it more or less a surprise. When I was writing, nothing kept me up at night more than trying to figure out where Belle would find all the stuff that she couldn't when some of it had been so freely available in seasons past. It finally dawned on me that it wasn't about where Belle would find it, but where Rumple would hide it. The cubby hole made sense. Not just because it was secret but still close by, but in my manner of thinking it does show a certain amount of trust in Belle on Rumple's part. I mean, he would have had to store all those things in season 4A, while they were married. Belle knew about the cubby hole, one of a few, ergo to "hide" them there wasn't so much about hiding them, as placing them within reach of someone that he trusted...if only she figures the riddle out.**

 **Thank you, thank you, thank you, Grace5231973, BabyBagheera, Teresa Martin, and Fox24 for the reviews and kind words that you left for me in the previous chapter. Yay! You are enjoying this story and feel that it is in line with Belle. Those are always big goals for me, as you know. It makes me so happy to hear that I am succeeding! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	17. The Reunion That Never Was

No sooner had she left the shop then she decided that she couldn't stand the thought of walking. Despite the light feeling she had after her "talk" with Rumple it only took one look at the dying rose for her to know that he didn't feel as light hearted as she was. She needed to hurry, to get her lunch, and get started on the spell to make him better so they could figure out where to go after that. She was nearly out of breath by the time that she got to the diner, but she didn't care. She ran into the diner and quickly found Granny standing behind the counter. She set her rose up between them and stepped up to her. "Granny, have you got my lunch ready?" she asked quickly.

"Yeah, but girl you're gonna need more than that," she told her as she turned and handed her a plate with a sandwich on it wrapped in plastic. "Sit down for some real food," the old woman ordered.

She shook her head at the offer. Granny's heart was in the right place, but she just couldn't right now, not with the breakthrough she'd just made! Not when the possibility of sitting down for real food was so close! "I can't," she informed her before reaching over and picking up her bell jar. She had to get her soup, go back to the shop and start to-

Her thoughts stopped as her eyes focused on the rose. It was just supposed to be a cursory check, one that she had been doing out of habit for the last week but this time she was caught by something different. She'd looked over just in time to see another petal fall.

No!

"Oh my God, look!" she gasped holding it up to check that what she'd seen was real. It was. Two petals!

That left only one more on the stem. One more petal!

She held her breath for a moment, fearing the last one would fall but it didn't.

Enough was enough! She never should have left the shop! She should have stayed and just started that spell right then! But there was still time. There was still one petal left. All she needed was a half hour to put that spell together and she could save him! It was her last chance. And she needed to get started on it. Now!

"Yeah…I have to get back to him, just forget the soup, I'm sorry!" she lunged for the door and-

"Hang on! Is it supposed to do that?" Granny called, catching her before she could go.

"Do that"? Do what?! She was afraid to look at what Granny was talking about for fear of what she might see, but her eyes were automatically drawn to it and she held the rose up to check it herself.

The petals…they weren't falling…they were rising.

She stared at it with wide eyes, completely mesmerized by the sight before her as each petal that had been floating around the stem floated up and fit itself back in place, sealing themselves back against the flower with small gold flashes of light. Even the ones that hadn't been floating there a second ago, the ones that had seemed to disappear or vanish over time seemed to reappear suddenly as the flower bloomed once more. Petal after petal returned to exactly the place it needed to be as a shimmer of glittering magic moved over it. And suddenly before her eyes, the once wilting rose stood straight and tall…and whole.

Whole. Complete. Healthy.

Her heart began to race. No, to answer Granny's question, it didn't do that, at least not that she'd seen or would remember seeing. Was it supposed to? She'd hoped that it would, for as long as she could remember having this rose she'd hoped that it would do exactly this, because if this happened if this rose was whole again, she could only think of one thing that could mean.

"He's waking up!" she realized in a breath.

Her hand felt light suddenly and a crash, the sound of glass breaking, from somewhere in the diner shook her from her stupor.

She shouldn't be here. She needed to be by his side when he woke! He needed to see her first thing! They had so much to discuss! "Bye!" she managed to breathe before taking off for the shop.

She ran as fast as she could in her high heels and with her jar tucked into her side. It was lunchtime, the streets were busy, poor Archie had smiled when he saw her running down the street and offered her a "Belle, long time no see!" but she'd only pushed her way passed him and hollered a frantic "sorry" over her shoulder as she continued her sprint. Her fingers fumbled as she unlocked the door.

"Rumple!" she cried as she threw it open. "Rumple I'm here!" she held her breath as she tried to get her legs to slow down so that she wouldn't crash into him when she finally tossed the curtain aside and-

Her heart fell as her legs came to a stop. Then again it felt as though her heart had stopped too.

What was she looking at? It…it just didn't seem real! The rose petals and all the unbelievable magic she'd ever seen in her life had seemed more believable than…this!

The cot was empty!

It was perfectly made and straightened. The blankets showed no signs that he'd ever been laying there or that she'd sat by his side only minutes ago, there wasn't even a divot on the pillow from where his head had once been!

Uselessly she let her eyes wander around the shop, hoping against all logic that he was there, hiding in a corner somewhere or maybe she'd find some clue as to where he'd gone when he got up. Maybe that was it. Maybe he'd run away! But the shop showed no signs of any kind of movement. It was as if he'd vanished. But…

She held the rose up before her and stared into it.

It was beautiful and whole and healthy. He hadn't vanished. She felt sure of that. He was alive. Somewhere he was alive and well. Just not here. She set her jar aside, suddenly feeling the chain that she'd felt had attached it to her over these last few weeks dissipate.

She hadn't been gone more than a five minutes and she'd just been out on the street. There were a lot of people out for lunch, but she was certain she would have noticed if one of them was Rumpelstiltskin! So she ignored main street and opened the back door that opened to the ally.

Nothing. No Rumple, no signs that the door had been used for weeks!

"Rumple?!" she called without much hope that she'd hear anyone call back.

"Belle?" she glanced up the ally and saw Archie and Pongo standing there looking back at her. "You seemed distressed? Something I can do?" he offered.

"Have you seen Rumple?" she asked trotting out to the street and looking up and down it just in case she'd been mistaken. Nothing.

"Isn't he in the back of the shop?" Archie questioned as she walked to the other side of the shop and looked for the car. It wouldn't be the first time he'd taken it when she wasn't looking. The question now was did she want to see that he'd taken it, or not?!

"No he's…" the car was there, parked in the same spot that it had been since she'd got back from the house. "He's missing," she concluded sadly. "Rumple is missing."

* * *

 **Oh look, Archie is back! And so is Pongo! In all honesty, it's because the next few chapters were probably the single most irritating thing about the Storybrooke storyline. Nope, it wasn't the timeline, it wasn't the mushroom, it wasn't even the stupid lack of Belle/Regina confrontation, it was what's coming next. "What is that Treatian?" Oh don't worry...you'll be hearing plenty about it in the next chapter in a new segment I'm going to entitle "Montreat rants about stupid Once Upon a Time Things". Title needs some work...but the points are just fine.**

 **Thank you BabyBagheera, Grace5231973, Ladybugsmomma, Carlyle23, and Teresa Martin for your reviews! They make me so happy every time I see that you are really enjoying these chapters despite the story line! It's what really encourages me, especially as I battle the unfortunate season 6 spoilers and get writing on 5B. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	18. If Not One Thing Then Another

Archie was helpful. He was good at getting her to calm down in the aftermath of Rumpelstiltskin's departure. He called Rapunzel first and foremost, who came out of the library with a strange man she hadn't met yet but knew the moment he introduced himself as "Flynn". Ordinarily she would have spent time talking about that, but her heart was racing so fast and beating so loud she could hardly hear them over the sound of rushing blood in her ears.

They took her into the shop, she showed them her rose and explained its purpose. She showed them the back room and the cot and even the spell and the things that she was hoping to use in the spell. "Wait if you were planning to use magic to get him back, why can't you just use magic now?" Flynn questioned looking through one of the spell books.

She gasped at the idea and dove back into the black bag for-

"Belle?" Rapunzel questioned.

"He's right I can use a tracking spell or even a…locator potion!" she cried raising it high in her hand. Thank goodness she'd encouraged him to replace what she'd used months ago and he'd listened! Amply, it appeared. It had been a long time since she'd had need to check in the bag but it was stocked. Three locator potions, three tracking potions, three entrapment potions, three repelling potions…on and on it went. She nervously tucked her hair behind her ear and shook her head. She could wonder at it later. Right now she needed to find him.

The clear liquid sloshed in the little vial as she set it on the table and grabbed the corn husk doll she'd set aside for the healing spell. She hated to use it but she needed something that she could definitely call his and the last thing she needed was Neal's baby blanket taking them to the cemetery. She poured the spell over the doll and for a minute the only sound in the room was Pongo's whining as his nails scraped against the wooden floor.

"Sorry," Archie apologized. "You cut our walk short. I-i-is that working?"

She shook her head and stared at it, willing it to rise up just as Prince Eric's cloak had months earlier. "It just needs a couple of minutes," she commented. It had taken time then too. More time than this?

No! There it went! The others stepped back, Flynn let out a small "whoa!", as the doll picked itself up off the table just as Eric's cloak had. She smirked, watched it, prepared to follow after it, and-

There was a loud thud as it fell back to the table, lifeless. Useless.

The only sign that anything had even occured at all was the smoke she couldn't explain suddenly pouring off the doll.

"What…what does that mean exactly?" Archie questioned.

"That can't be good," Rapunzel commented with wide eyes.

She didn't know what to think. She didn't know what to do. An echo from the back of her mind, logic, told her that Rapunzel was right that it wasn't good. But the person she'd once been, the one that had believed in Rumpelstiltskin with her whole heart and mind and soul screamed at her to have hope! "Maybe he got that spell wrong," she concluded diving for a second vial.

She poured the second one over the doll and held her breath as she, and everyone in the room, waited once more. Seconds ticked by. Hearts beat. Minutes passed. The doll rose up off the table. Something was happening, something diffferent, something...it was smoking. Only more than it had before. She watched horrified as the smoke on the doll erupted into angry red boils and then flame. The doll was on fire, and considering it was made of nothing than a dried corn husk it burned quickly, until it was nothing but a black charred version of what it had been…and then dropped back down just as it had before.

She could have cried. She felt like she was going to cry. Why on earth would it do that? She had a feeling she knew, she just wasn't sure she wanted to believe it. "That...that doll was old, brittle," she explained to her friends. "I just need something stronger..." In a flash she grabbed his black bag and pulled out a piece of golden straw, something strong and certainly his own. The third and final vial was in her hand when she felt another hand enclose her own. "He must have gotten the batch wrong," Archie murmured in her ear, stopping her before she could try again. But even as he said it the sensible and logical voice that knew her husband wasn't always what he pretended to be, but was exactly what she knew he could be was already beginning to speak louder to her.

He hadn't gotten the spell wrong. She'd never known him to get a spell wrong in all her life! He wouldn't mess up a simple locater potion. He just wouldn't. And deep down she knew that getting the locator potion wrong was not likely to cause the doll to burst into flames. Was it possible that something was blocking his magic? No! It couldn't have been. She didn't know when he'd crafted these spells but he certainly hadn't been able to since he became human again. This was Dark One magic no one should have been able to cancel it out or stop it! Not unless…

"Alright," Archie whispered pulling her back to the table. "We need to call Mary Margaret and David. They can help us find him."

She shook her head. "They're busy."

"With something more important than this?" Rapunzel questioned.

"Their daughter is the Dark One, what's not more important than this?" Flynn burst out. Rapunzel's eyes went wide and she gently pushed his shoulder. "What? Oh…no offense," he added quickly. "I…didn't mean this wasn't important."

No, of course he hadn't. But that didn't mean that what he'd said wasn't true. She loved Mary Margaret and David, truly she did, but they could be blind and deaf to the rest of the world when it came to Emma. They'd see this was important, but not as important as Emma. Which left Regina…

No. She was busy too. She was trying her best to figure out a way to get through to Emma and with Robin and Zelena…

"He's right," she agreed sitting down on the cot, the place that Rumple had been only moments ago and dropping her head into her hands. "I'm on my own."

"Hey…" Archie cooed, tugging Pongo's leash aside and reaching out to hold her hand. "I know you must feel like you're alone right now but you're not. I know it might not seem like much, but you've got me."

"And me, too," Rapunzel insisted kneeling down on her other side and taking her other hand.

"What the hell," Flynn shrugged, "my calendar's free."

"And you've got your rose!" Rapunzel said quickly leaving her side and retrieving the bell jar and setting it down beside her. "The blue fairy said it was linked to him, right. And the more he suffered the more petal's it lost. It looks perfect to me. There's not a hint of decay or death on it. He's out there, Belle, and he's healthy and we're going to find him if it takes us all night."

"We'll search everywhere," Archie volunteered. "Pongo's not much of search dog, but we've got cars, we'll use them. Check every shop in town, the house, the well, the cabin! Anywhere and everywhere he might go and anywhere that he might not. We're going to find him."

She didn't have the heart to tell them what she was thinking, what she was dreading, merely pushed all logic aside and nodded her head. She was desperate to believe that it was as simple as him running off. She needed to feel like she had that little bit of control over her life right now. If he'd run off and was hiding from her somewhere then she could do something about it. It was something more if he'd been taken by the one person that she feared above all…there was nothing that she could do. If Emma had a non-magic Rumpelstiltskin in her grasp there was no telling what would happen. So she stood at the table with the three of them as Archie made calls she didn't listen to and she listed all the places that Rumple might have gone. She started with the obvious ones-house, shop, library, cabin, the cemetery, the well; but by the end, it was clear she was grasping at straws. The beach that she'd originally hid the dagger, the dock they'd returned to after Neverland, Granny's, the jail cell, Ingrid's hideaway, and…

"Zelena's house?" Rapunzel questioned. "Why on earth would he go there?"

Honestly, she didn't know. But it was a place that he had been. And sometimes he was a man she didn't know. "She kept him prisoner for over a year," Archie answered slipping his phone back into his pocket. "It's empty now, right?" She nodded. "People do strange things when they're under pressure and victims of kidnappings sometimes feel safe in odd places, Stockholm syndrome. Tell you what. I'll investigate that myself. If he's there it might be better he talk to me…"

Archie's words were a blur but she agreed with them and told him that he was looking for a storm cellar. That was where he'd been. Archie promised to call her if he found anything.

"Flynn and I will check out a few of the places here in town. Maybe someone saw him or which direction he was going."

"I just talked to Leroy. He and the others will look into the beach, the cemetery, the mansion, the docks, odds and ends places like that. That should leave you the house, the well, and the cabin."

"And Ingrid's hideaway. Can you check there?"

She opened her mouth to say that she could because she'd been there before but then remembered that she hadn't actually gone there. Rumple had used magic to get them there and get them back. She'd been there, stood outside of it, and it was possible that if she had days to look she might be able to find it again but she couldn't be positive. If he was there he could hide away forever and she'd never know it.

"Maybe we should call Robin Hood," Archie suggested. "The Merry Men are familiar with the woods. Maybe they could find it."

Robin Hood. He might call Regina and she didn't want to alarm anyone until she was positive, until she had absolute proof! But she didn't need Robin for this, despite the fact that she probably could use his help. "Can Leroy go out to their campsite and find Little John?" she asked. "He acted as leader with Will while Robin was away, he could put together a search party."

Archie nodded, yes, and just like that they set off. He took Pongo and they got into his car to drive away. Flynn gave a cheeky smile to Rapunzel and offered her his elbow, she blushed and took it, and she watched the pair of them walk to the shop next door, open the door, and heard her call "Excuse me! I need some help" before it closed and her voice muffled. As if by magic two-no, three-trucks whizzed past her, leaving Granny's and she saw from a wave of the men inside gave her that it was the dwarves. Archie, Rapunzel, Flynn, her, and seven dwarves…what were the chances that none of them would tell Mary Margaret and David?

It wasn't that she didn't want them to know. She just didn't know if she could repeat what had been done a year ago when they were all living in the castle together and she was fighting for Rumple and Bae while they fought against Zelena. Being at odds with people she considered friends took a toll and it was a toll she just couldn't bear right now. Not with Rumple suddenly and mysteriously gone.

She sighed, wiped some tears off her cheeks, and examined the rose. The fog had returned to the glass, but a single thought had the ability to clear it just as always. Rapunzel was right, the rose was perfectly healthy and fine, which meant that while he was missing from her life so was Rumple. Why did it have to be like this all the time? Apart? Always fighting? Never together? If it wasn't one thing it was another! Why did she feel like their greatest enemy wasn't him, or her, or even Regina and her father…but rather the world?

* * *

 **Alright, rant time. What pissed me off the most about season five, these next few chapters. Why the hell did it take so long for Belle to tell everyone that Rumple was missing? I think it was a huge oversight on the part of the guys not to Belle call Mary Margaret or David or even Regina and Robin Hood the moment Rumple when missing. I mean, seriously, 5x03 ends and the next thing we see of Belle it's the next afternoon! She's changed, she's got her hair done nicely, and all of a sudden it's like "oh, by the way, Rumple went missing yesterday, sorry I waited to tell you, is that bad?" I mean, really? If it was you, even with the history, wouldn't you call someone first? Instead of saying "oh my Rumple is missing, that might be a problem, but I guess now is the time to go home, get a good night's sleep, and a shower, and then I'll try to figure out what I should do about it." I understood, and defended the guys, when 5x01 came around, and people criticized her. Why? Because Rumple was at least stable, the emergency had passed, and she had a way of checking in on him. But here? In a genuine emergency?! If Belle had turned up in 5x04 wearing exactly what she wore in 5x03, this would be a different story, but frankly, I was disappointed in the writing and acting for that! I had to come up with something; I couldn't just let Belle go without doing something until she runs into them the next day! These next few chapters are an attempt to rectify that problem. Shall we see how I go?**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, BabyBagheera, Teresa Martin, Fox24, Ladybugsmomma, and Carlyle23, for the reviews you left me. Did anyone guess that this was going to be problem? Anyone have the same issues that I did? I'm looking forward to hearing what you all think about it! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	19. The Search Party

After everyone left the shop yesterday she'd locked up and gone out with their makeshift search party to look for Rumple, her logical, negative voice mocked her the entire way home.

He was human, he might have his limp back, he might be groggy after waking up, how was he supposed to make it back to the house on his own or farther for that matter?!

But that didn't stop her. She drove home with the rose in the front seat of her car to look anyway. "Rumple?!" she'd called out before she realized that he wasn't going to make it that easy on her. If he really had run away from her out of fear or some other crazy reason then he certainly wasn't going to just walk out of the kitchen with his hands raised in surrender or call down the stairs "I'm just getting in the shower, sweetheart" like nothing had happened! He'd hide. So she went through each room, bottom to top. She started in the basement, then checked the kitchen, the backyard, living room, dining room, sitting room. She looked in all the bedrooms, the bathrooms, the shower, even closely examined both of the staircases. Nothing was different.

Before she left she had two calls from her cell phone. The first was from Leroy, he'd gone to the beach. It was clear. The second was from Rapunzel, three stores covered and so far no one had seen him. Flynn was going to go over the library with a fine tooth comb while she continued to check the street.

So she'd left the house and went to the next place on her list. The woods. She drove her car as far as she could up into the woods and walked the rest of the way to the well. She'd nearly cried when she saw it. This was the first time she'd been back here since they'd been married and she felt her chin wobble at the thought that the last time she'd approached the well in this way he'd looked at her breathlessly. It was hard to believe that only a couple of hours ago she'd wondered if they'd ever get those looks back and now…

No! She wasn't going to do that to herself. She wasn't going to torture herself wondering 'what if' until she found him and knew what was fact or fiction. So she didn't let herself think about the night that she'd been married, she didn't think about the look in his eyes, or the way she'd cried, or the way that she'd felt when he'd kissed her shamelessly, and then over and over again. She just examined the well and then the ground. Nothing. No footprints. No scuffles. She left the well and hiked through the woods around her for a while, just in case Ingrid's lair came into view or just in case he was out here somewhere. Nothing.

Except for two more calls. Leory. He was at the docks, there was a lot to look over and the others were helping, but so far nothing seemed out of place and none of the sailors recognized him. Rapunzel. She'd just left Granny's. No news.

Frustrated she'd put her phone away and walked back to the well and peered inside. The memories that Lacey had given her told her something special about the well beyond their marriage. Legend said it could return that which was lost. Well…she supposed it wasn't just Lacey's memories. Rumple had told her that too. The first time they'd been reunited and he'd brought her up here, the first time they'd kissed each other in this world, the first time he'd kissed her and pulled her closer instead of pushing her away…

She'd wiped the tears from her eyes once more and tried to shake the memories away but she couldn't. So she embraced it, she used what she knew, what she remembered from that moment and from others. This well was magic wasn't it? She glanced around and found what she needed. Earth, for grounding. Pine needles, for locating. A daisy, for luck. She picked a piece of cement out from between the bricks to let the magic find her location, then she took all four, looked into the well and dropped them inside of it. "Rumpelstiltskin. Rumpelstiltskin. Rumpelstiltskin." Three times, that was how to summon him when he'd been the Dark One, when he had magic and she didn't need to find it to get his attention. Now she needed the magic the well and the ingredients would provide for her. She felt something. She felt magic in the air, she felt a gust of it rise up from the well. But then nothing happened. Just like at the Pawn Shop when the doll had fallen to the floor she could feel that the magic had gone from the air. It had tried to summon him but with no success.

She felt sick to her stomach when she left. That wasn't a good sign. Not at all. And the setting sun didn't make her feel better either. How was it possible that this was taking as long as it was?!

She got another call as she drove to the cabin. This one was from Archie. He'd searched Zelena's house and found the storm cellar that she'd told him about. Rumple wasn't there. "I'm going to check the woods out here a bit with Pongo before I call it a day though. Listen…that cage…if Gold ever needs to talk…I'm around. Maybe we can get to the bottom of-"

"Don't you think we should find him first before we start talking about something like that?" she questioned. She knew what he was going to offer and the truth was it was a kind offer that she wished Rumple would take him up on, but in the end she knew he wouldn't. At least the Rumple she had known wouldn't have. He had been effected by his time with Zelena, she knew that he had. But no matter how many times she'd tried to get him to talk to her about it he'd always refused or changed the subject. If he wouldn't talk to her, then there was no way he'd talk to Archie.

It was dark by the time that she reached the cabin. She'd had two more calls from Leroy that the mines were clear and he wasn't at the cemetery and they were about to go and join the Merry Men looking through the woods for Ingrid's lair. Rapunzel called when she got out of the car. Nothing from Main Street. Nothing in the library. "I'm sorry Belle. Is there anything else we can do?" she'd leaned against the door and looked out into the darkening woods. Was there anything else to be done? She felt like there was so much but she couldn't figure out what it was! She didn't even know where to begin. They'd all checked everywhere that she could think of, if he wasn't in any of those places…

"Can you just keep an eye on the shop and the library for me? If he's going to go anywhere I think that's where he'd go first."

Rapunzel had agreed, and she'd stepped inside the cabin to find it…not the way she remembered.

"Rumple?!" she called out excited, finally feeling like maybe she had found him. Rumple?!" she yelled diving into the bedroom. Nothing. The bathroom, clear; there wasn't even water in the tub to suggest someone had bathed recently!

She jumped when her phone rang again. "Archie!" she breathed heading out into the main room to examine the place more. The cabin was small. There weren't many places that he could hide but…maybe he'd been here and left her a clue? It was different than she remembered it. Furniture was moved, jackets neither of them owned were hung up, some old rope was tossed to the floor, it looked like there might have been a struggle of some kind here.

"I'm sorry, I checked the woods, but I didn't find anything. You know, we really should try to call Mary Margaret and David, I think they'd be more receptive than you think."

"That may not be necessary," she'd explained, righting the furniture and looking around for anything that was out of place or strange, anything that might point her in a different direction and lead her to Rumple.

"Did you find him?" Archie questioned.

"Um…" she sighed as she spun around realizing that not as much was different as she'd thought it had been. Furniture was in the wrong place but other than the jackets and some rope…that was about it. But still, it was something. And it hadn't been done by nobody. "Maybe," she conceded with Archie. "You know, thanks for your help Archie, I'll let you know if I find anything."

"And if you don't?" he'd questioned.

She knew where that question was going. She didn't like it, but if she couldn't find him beyond this then she knew what she'd have to do. Rumple missing, magic not working to find him…maybe they'd focus on it more if they knew it had something to do with Emma. "I'll call them," she promised. "Just give me until the morning to find him and I'll tell them what happened." And oddly enough she knew without thinking about it that she'd start with Regina. She couldn't think of a reason why, she just knew she would. Strange.

She said good-bye to Archie and let herself out the back door. The woods. If he'd been here and left maybe he'd be in the woods or-

No sooner had she stepped outside the door did her ear tune in to a strange sound to her right. It came from the dock. There was a small row boat tied to the end of it that was hitting against the dock post. That was the sound that she'd heard. Was it possible Rumple was there? She couldn't see into the little boat from where she was…

She walked down to the dock and did her best to look into the boat, but it was drifting away, pulling at its tether and she couldn't make anything out. So she walked out onto the dock-

And stopped when it creaked against her weight.

She could feel the wood bend beneath her foot as she stood there and thought back to the day that she'd spent out here years ago, during her first trip to the cabin. She'd jumped in the water off of this dock, but only from the side because of this very problem; she'd been worried that the wood wouldn't hold her.

She swallowed and glanced out at the boat. "Rumple?!" she called out again. "I-is that you?" Nothing but silence greeted her. So she moved to the side of the pier and continued down the dock slowly. The wood still groaned but it wasn't nearly as bad as it had been. Still it didn't exactly make her comfortable. "Rumple?" she breathed moving forward. "It's really cold out here and…I really don't like this dock. I just want to talk to you. I'm not mad I just…"

Her heart fell. She was nearly at the end and now she could see into the boat. Without thinking she took the final three steps to fully peer inside.

He wasn't there. That meant that Emma-

The dock groaned.

The wood cracked.

The next thing she felt was ice cold water hit her skin as she screamed and fell into the water.

* * *

 **Don't get excited about the dock breaking. It really doesn't really mean anything. True story, I put it in there because I needed a reason to force her to change her clothes. Unlike the guys, I was not comfortable just having Belle randomly go out there and take a nap and shower while her husband was missing, so I created something to make sure that she had to do it. It worked better for me than "oh guys, Rumple is missing by the way, but don't worry, my hair looks awesome!"**

 **Thank you, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Fox24, Carlyle23, Grace5231973, Rumbellefan, Ladybugsmomma, Teresa Martin, and BabyBagheera, for the kind words you left me on the previous chapter. Yay! I'm so happy to hear how many of you agreed with me that it was really bad writing that did all this. Let's hope it gets better Rumbellers. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	20. Admitting Defeat

Something woke her up out of a dead sleep in the middle of the night. She opened her eyes and tried to figure out where she was as the world blurred before her eyes. She was tired. So, so tired. But she recognized the cabin. She was in the bedroom of the cabin. It was dark outside, and she was…wrapped in a towel on the bed?

She remembered then.

She'd fallen into the lake when the dock broke into pieces. She'd been drenched. And it hadn't even really been worth it. The boat had been empty; the woods were empty. The only thing she'd managed to find all night was this cabin in disarray. So, cold as she'd been, she came back to the cabin and decided to wait. She'd finally pulled the suitcase she'd packed for New York City out of the trunk of the car, taken a hot shower, come out to the bedroom, sat down and checked her phone for messages. When she hadn't found any she'd flopped back on her bed, and that must have been when she'd fallen asleep. Understandable, she'd been up all night the night before this one. She'd been exhausted.

So why had she-

Phone!

At the sound of the ringing, she reached out and grabbed for it once more. The digital clock on it told her that it was four in the morning. Hardly enough sleep to catch her up, but more than she needed to get back to work. And according to the phone that was what she needed to do. It was Leroy.

"Sorry sister," he apologized when she picked up.

"You didn't find it," she assumed. Ingrid's hideout was the only place left that they had to check and Leroy apologizing first thing wasn't exactly encouraging.

"Oh, we found it alright. Took us nearly all night, but we found it. The place is abandoned. Looks like it has been for a while. Nothing but puddles of water, if it wasn't for stupid things we wouldn't have put it together."

"Stupid things?"

"Hairbrush, some metal fastenings, things like that…"

In other words, nothing that pointed to Rumple being there, only artifacts from Ingrid's short reign. "Oh, well…thank you, Leroy. I appreciate you looking."

"Anytime sister, but if you don't mind, we're all going home, it's been a long night."

A long night indeed. And it wasn't over for her yet. She remembered the promise she'd made to Archie, but she was stubborn. She wanted to be sure, absolutely positive before she gave in. So she got up, finished getting dressed, did her hair…she dragged her feet a bit. Holding out hope that he'd turn back up from wherever he'd gone. But he didn't.

She drove back to the house as the sun was coming up and searched it one last time. It was still empty. She checked in with Rapunzel at the library and even called Archie one more time but didn't find anything new. She couldn't deny that it was morning by the time that she arrived back at the shop. That doll…that stupid horrible ugly reminder of his father served as a reminder this morning of a truth she could no longer deny.

He hadn't run away. She couldn't think of a reason he would want to after he woke up! His last memories of them together would have been good; he would want to talk to her. And if magic wasn't working…it was Emma. It had to be Emma. Her rose showed that he was alive, and no one else would have been able to hide Rumple in a place that magic couldn't find him! She didn't know how she'd done it or why but somehow Emma had taken him and healed him and was now keeping him somewhere.

Her mind flashed back to the storm cellar, to that awful cage she'd found him in when he'd been held captive by Zelena.

She sniffed her tears away and finally admitted what she hadn't wanted to before. She needed help. So she picked up her bell jar and went to Granny's looking for a group of people that always seemed to be there when she needed them. Naturally, they were missing too.

"Granny, where is everyone? Mary Margaret? David? Regina?" the last name came out with a sneer, but whether she liked it or not she and Regina could make a great team when necessary. She didn't want to work with her, but after she'd helped Robin this was the least Regina could do to return the favor.

"Haven't been in yet this morning," Granny answered cleaning some glasses. "And you didn't come home last night."

She ignored Granny's questioning eyes and picked up her cell phone. She scrolled down and found Robin Hood's name. "Belle? Is everything alright?"

"Where are you?" she asked. "You and Regina?"

"Just leaving the sheriff station now actually. We're going to Granny's for breakfast." Ah, she was too early...

She didn't say anything else, just hung up the phone. The station to Granny's. They'd be by any moment now. So she wiped her eyes, grabbed her bell jar to prove that Rumple was out there somewhere alive and most likely even awake, and walked down the street to meet them since she didn't particularly want to announce the issue in Granny's. Finally, she saw them turn the corner across the street.

All of them.

Not just Robin and Regina. Regina and Mary Margaret were leading the group as they spoke to each other and David, Killian, Robin, Henry, even King Arthur, and a woman she didn't know trailed behind them. Still, she didn't stop. She couldn't afford to stop and rethink her choice. Archie was right. She needed help.

"Belle, what is it?" Mary Margaret questioned the moment she ran over to them, recognizing in almost no time at all that there was a problem.

"It's uh-it's Rumple!" she declared as she struggled to catch her breath.

"What happened?" Mary Margaret asked as Regina looked at her nervously as if preparing for terrible news. The news wasn't exactly what she thought it was, but she had a feeling it was just as bad! Regina and Rumple, her and Regina…the three of them really did have the oddest relationship she'd ever heard of.

"He's missing!" she declared.

"What?" Regina questioned watching her with black eyes. "He's unconscious you think he just got up and left?"

"No and…no…" she answered lifting the defogging bell jar up for them to see. The rose was just as it had been yesterday afternoon. Perfect and whole. And they knew it hadn't been that way before. "I went to Granny's yesterday for lunch. I was working on a spell I found to heal him, but it wasn't finished yet, I hadn't even started it. It lost a petal, then everything reversed and just like that the rose was whole again. But when I got back to the shop Rumple was gone."

"Hang on…you knew about this yesterday?" Mary Margaret blanched.

"At first I thought he might have just run away because he was disoriented, you were busy, so Archie helped me form a search party and we looked for him."

"What do you mean 'at first'?" Regina questioned still examining the rose.

She swallowed as she settled the bell jar back in the crook of her arm. "That's what worries me. I tried a locator potion twice and then a summoning charm by the well. All three times the spells started but they didn't finish. The doll actually burst into flames! The magic…it-it just…stopped! It vanished as though there was nothing to find or as if something was-"

"Blocking it," Regina finished for her with a sneer. "Emma…"

She felt her stomach turn upside-down. She really had wanted it not to be Emma's name that came to her mind first and foremost. A logical explanation, a suggestion, something that she hadn't thought about but had convinced her that she was simply being paranoid and jumping to conclusions about Emma…she'd have taken any of those things. The fact that Regina had gone there first didn't exactly settle her mind.

"I think she took him," she confirmed for the rest of them. "I can't think of anyone else powerful enough to cut off Rumple's magic, even if he's not the Dark One anymore."

"Only the present Dark One," Regina commented.

"I don't know where she's got him. We've looked everywhere, all over town-"

"I might have an answer to that," Killian responded stepping forward. "But perhaps we should discuss it somewhere a bit more private instead of out in the middle of main street Storybrooke in front of everyone."

She glanced around and saw that he was right. They might not have been in Granny's but people were milling about everywhere and while she was sure nothing would happen if they overheard them speaking, the same couldn't be said for King Arthur and his mysterious female companion. She didn't know why, but she just didn't trust them the way the others seemed to. It was something in his eyes, something that reminded her of Rumple. She didn't like it.

"Let's go inside," she agreed.

* * *

 **I pre-apologize for the choppiness of the next 4-5 chapters, especially the scenes that take place in Emma's house. I had to cut things up because they certainly didn't flow together like one happy chapter should. Everything that needs to be there is there, but again there is only so much I can do with the seen stuff, and a lot of it turned out very short and like I said, kinda choppy.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, Carlyle23, Matty, Ladybugsmomma, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, and Teresa Martin, I hope that this chapter was alright and that the ones that came before it backed it up enough that this seems less...I don't know...stupid? Random? Late? I know I can't fix it entirely, but I hope that I've at least enhanced the poor writing so that it's halfway decent. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	21. A New Plan Forms

No sooner had they taken two strides across the street than Mary Margaret caught their arms and muttered to Regina "Maybe you are better qualified for this and I can keep our _guests_ happy and worry free."

Regina followed Regina's head bob over to King Arthur and the woman. She didn't know exactly what she was talking about, but she knew right away that Regina was going to remove them from the picture, and she couldn't wish for anything more. She didn't know why King Arthur upset her so much, but she knew that he did, and she didn't particularly want him hanging around and listening to every detail of what was going on. So Mary Margaret, David, King Arthur, and the woman all took their leave and left them to walk to Granny's.

"Wh-who was that?" she asked as they crossed the street.

"King Arthur," Robin responded.

"No, the other one, the woman. I've never seen her before."

"Oh," Regina sighed, "she's Arthur's wife, Guinevere."

She nodded. Really, she knew Camelot history from books she'd read back home and from the legends in the library. She should have guessed it would be her. Though she supposed it was odd...as far as she knew, Guinevere had left King Arthur for a knight named Lancelot.

She shook her head. It was nothing but a reminder that sometimes the stories she read in this world were not the most accurate and anyway it didn't even really matter. There was too much else going on for her to question who one individual was and why she was with her husband. For example, why were Arthur and Guinevere in town with them in the first place when last she'd heard they'd been camping out in the forest? Why were they coming from the jail cell? And really, what had Mary Margaret been talking about?!

"Why were they in town?"

"Long story."

"But it might have something to do with Emma," Killian pointed out making all of them stop in their tracks just inside Granny's patio. "First the Crocodile and now the Squire…I can't be the only one to sense something foul is going on here."

Regina gave a deep sigh and sat down at one of the picnic tables. "He's right. Emma could be just as responsible for one as she is for the other. It just all seems too random! Why would she want a dwarf axe? Why would she want Rumple?!"

She only shook her head and took the seat opposite Regina. "What are you talking about a squire?" she asked suddenly interested. If they were over there for an odd reason that might just have to do with Rumple then she wanted to know about it! What was going on? What had she missed?

"Mom!" Henry called glancing up from his phone. "I've got to go talk to someone. I'll be back later."

"Who?!" Regina asked almost angrily as Henry turned to leave. "Who is he talking to? And why am I the last one to know about it?"

"You are his mother," Robin pointed out sitting on Regina's other side. "What teenage boy wants to tell his mother about a first love?"

"That teenage boy!" she replied. "He knows he can tell me anything!"

"It's not that kind of secret, Regina," he finished with a smirk.

Not that kind of secret…

She glanced over her shoulder at Henry who was walking down the street, unaware of the world around him as he stared at his phone and kept walking. Regina wanted to know who, but Henry wouldn't lie unless…

She felt herself smile as she suddenly began to put two and two together. "Wait, is…is Henry talking to a girl?!"

"Oh good! It appears I'm not the _last_ to know," Regina said sourly.

"The lad has a girlfriend, and he's keeping it a secret from his parents and grandparents," Killian confirmed for them. "Stranger things have been known to happen. For example, Emma, this town's Savior, has suddenly become a ruthless Dark One, and no one seems to know how to fix it, perhaps we should focus on that instead of a teenage romance."

Regina glared at Killian. It was easy to see that for her finding out who Henry's mysterious girlfriend might be was of utmost importance, but she appeared to at least know that she would be in the minority of that opinion. Much to her dissatisfaction she had no choice but to think about Emma before Henry.

"Killian is right," she muttered trying to ease her tension, though she couldn't quite figure out why considering her current opinion of the woman. "Henry will be fine but Emma won't and we have no idea what she is doing to Rumple. What do you know?"

Regina sighed and grit her teeth. "Yesterday there was a robbery over in the camp," she began.

Belle nodded her head. "Right, David came into the shop looking for what was stolen. Last I saw him he'd grabbed a cup and said it would solve everything."

"Well I guess it did, last night they arrested one of Arthur's Squires who confessed he broke into the reliquary and took items for some stupid reason or other."

"I believe the reason was that he was upset because Arthur didn't treat him well enough," Robin provided.

"Like I said, some stupid reason or other," Regina waved away. "They arrested him last night, took him to the prison, came in this morning to feed him, and he was gone."

"Gone?" she questioned. "Just like that."

"Just like that."

"What about the security system? Did it show anything?"

This time, it was Robin who gave the uncomfortable sigh. "Apparently, they're in the process of renovating the system after Zelena's escape. It wasn't on."

Well, that was a happy coincidence! Not that it would have mattered with Emma, she'd been in the room last year if she'd had anything to do with the Squire's disappearance she would have thought to turn it off. But why would she want to take the Squire? Why ruin Doc's birthday party? Why steal an axe?! And where was she keeping it all?!

She glanced over at Killian. "You said you might know where she's hiding Rumple. Where?"

"At her house. When I was there a couple of days ago testing a theory. Robin and I have been trying to break in-"

"You've been what?!" Regina blanched.

"Only the very preliminary stages of planning," Robin corrected. "He only told me he needed to break in yesterday and for that you ask a thief."

"Why do you want to break in there?!"

"Because of what I saw," Killian insisted. "There's a door in her house, it's kept locked, every time I question her about it, she diverts. It could be where she's keeping the Crocodile. If we could figure out a way to break inside, then we might be able to figure out what she's doing, what she's planning."

"Right but we'd need a distraction," Robin inserted. "We can't break in while she's in the house and chances are we can't even break in while she's out, she might have magical alarms that would warn her we're there. We don't just need a distraction we need a very good distraction, something to get her out of the house and genuinely hold her attention for long enough that she won't notice what's going on in her home."

"Maybe the party tonight," Killian suggested. "She had no trouble stepping out of her house to destroy the dwarves drinking festival, maybe she'll leave to do the same tonight."

"What party?" she asked looking at Regina again.

Regina rolled her eyes. "Apparently, the Camelotians are getting restless and depressed. Mary Margaret is going to plan a dance for them here tonight to raise spirits. It's a good idea," she said looking over at Killian. "But we don't know that Emma will show up for sure and even if she does we can't leave the people unprotected or assure anyone who goes to investigate the house that they'd have more than a couple of minutes."

"A couple of minutes might be all that we need," he pointed out.

No. A couple of minutes might be all that they need but Regina was right, a "distraction" like that might keep Emma busy for a minute or so but the minute it was over all she had to do was poof herself back to her home and then they'd be trapped. Not to mention that doing it that way was going to endanger the lives of countless individuals. No. They couldn't do it that way. It was too much of a risk. They had to come up with something else.

"Maybe you could get her out of the house," she suggested looking at Killian. "Love is a powerful thing. Rumple was always the Dark One, but he was human with me. Maybe if you took her somewhere-"

"Been there, done that. I don't think she'll want to see me again considering the circumstances."

"Maybe not…but there might be someone else who could appeal to the Emma we know. Love comes in many forms after all. Give me a few minutes," Regina requested before getting up and going into the diner.

She glanced at Robin, wondering if he could offer her some kind of explanation. "She was up late last night," he excused. "Along with the Squire, David was able to find something she was looking for, and she was working on a potion into the early morning hours."

Her eyes went wide. "David found the Crimson Crown?"

"Supposedly it can help us figure out what happened to Merlin," Killian added for her benefit.

"No, I know what it is I just didn't know that she'd found it!"

"David did," Robin corrected. "Regina's just trying to figure out how to use it. You know how?"

"I-"

"Let's go!" Regina exclaimed emerging from the diner and replacing her cell phone. "We might not have long we have to be ready to go. Let's go find out what's behind that door."

* * *

 **::Bang my head against the wall:: So much to explain, so much to catch others up on, so much stupid stuff that was skipped but can't be skipped because skipping it is out of character for pretty much everyone! So...I guess this means that this chapter is filler, but necessary filler in my opinion because everyone has been on relatively different pages up until now and I wanted to be able to put everyone back on the same pages again.**

 **Thank you, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Fox24, Grace5231973, Teresa Martin, Matty, and Ladybugsmomma for the reviews you left for me. I hope this chapter is okay. Filler or not I do believe it is necessary. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	22. Breaking and Entering

The four of them piled into Regina's car at her orders and drove. After a while, she came to a stop in front of a yellow house with a brick wall.

"Emma lives here now?" she questioned looking it over. She knew Emma hadn't picked it out before she'd been the Dark One and for someone cursed with Dark Magic it was terribly cheery and light. Yes, she knew their house was pink, but it at least looked omnious, a fact that she believed assisted in keeping people away. This house looked like it should have a rainbow over it and any second someone dressed like Granny would emerge with a gardening shovel and ask them inside for cookies and cake!

"Of course not," Regina growled, easing her suspicions. "Down the block a few houses. I wanted to be far enough away so she didn't see us when she left."

"How do you plan on getting her out of the house?" Killian asked.

Regina took out her cell phone and held it in her hand. "Henry. I told him it might help Emma if he spent some time with her like they used to."

Her eyes went wide as her heart stopped and she stared at Regina. "You did what?!"

"Are you really sure it's a good idea to send a child to do a man's job?" Killian questioned. "She's the bloody Dark One; she's not the mother he remembers."

"Henry isn't a child anymore," Regina insisted. "And there may be a lot of things I don't trust Emma with at the moment, but our son's heart isn't one of them. She won't let anything bad happen to him."

"It's not so much other people doing bad to him that'd I'd worry about," she responded. After all, Rumple had never let anything bad happen to her. The only bad that had ever been inflicted on her had been the unintentional fallout from his own actions. Unintentional, but the damage was still catastrophic.

"It's just one afternoon. They'll probably go out for ice cream or something like old times, his presence should distract her enough to let her guard down and get us into the house, and as long as we're quick about it then-" Regina looked down as the phone in her hand suddenly chimed. She pressed a couple of buttons, looked the screen over a few times, and then reached for the door handle. "Showtime," she muttered getting out of the car. The rest of them followed suit. She didn't like how this had happened, but never the less it had, and she allowed it to take a final glance at her rose, strong and healthy, before setting it down on the floor and going with the others. She followed them as they made their way down the street and stopped outside of a white picket fence house…literally. There was a white picket fence that surrounded a beautiful piece of property. A baby blue house sat on it that might have been just as big if not bigger than her house. She supposed that it was a little less cheerful than what she'd originally suspected she'd find at Emma's house but not by much. She'd expected something a little less…bright!

"Are you sure Emma's gone, sure this is a good idea?" Killian asked as Regina let herself in and began to make her way up the stairs.

"It'll be fine. Henry says he's got Emma occupied," Regina assured them. She couldn't stop looking at the house! It was so odd, so different than what she was used to and yet as she looked around she knew that it wasn't terribly far from where she lived. It was closer to the shore, true, but maybe only a couple of blocks from where she lived. All this time Emma had practically been down the street! That was…unnerving to say the least.

"Have you told Henry what we're doing?" Killian asked.

"No, but he'll let us know when she's headed back," Regina promised as they climbed up the stairs. "Let's do this."

But the moment Regina reached for the door a shockwave of energy ripped through the air from the place she'd just touched. She felt the wave and was able to brace herself against it but Regina wasn't as lucky. She pulled her hand away as if she'd been burned but not fast enough to feel the full effect of it and get thrown from the house. She was lucky. If Robin hadn't been standing right behind her and quickly moved to catch her she might very well have fallen off the porch and down the very long way to the ground.

"You okay?" Robin questioned as Regina examined her hand with an angry sneer. Still, she bottled her frustrations well, closed her hand into a fist and looked back up at the house.

"It's a protection spell," she explained without actually answering Robin's question.

"Well it appears she doesn't want you trespassing," Killian observed with something like amusement.

Clearly, Regina didn't share that same amusement. She sighed and glared at him as if wishing she could set him on fire for his comment. "You want to try, Pirate?"

"Well, I know she doesn't want me to."

A protection spell. A spell that would keep people out. But protection spells, for energy's sake, rarely incorporated everyone. That's why when Zelena began attacking villages in the Enchanted Forest Regina argued she couldn't place a protection spell around every village; it was too much energy. It had to be against someone specific. Regina couldn't get in; Killian couldn't get in. She couldn't have set it against Dark magic or wicked intentions because it wouldn't let Emma herself in. Perhaps it was the opposite then, perhaps it was set against good intentions, although breaking in certainly wasn't a good intention they had so that couldn't be it either.

She took a breath and tried to think around the spell. Maybe intentions weren't important. It wasn't who Emma wouldn't let in the house that mattered; they needed to figure out who she would allow to-

The basement. She thought of the door to the basement in her house, the way Rumple had bewitched it similar to this so that it would accept her hand but no one else's. It would burn if anyone besides her touched it. It might even send out a shockwave as this protection spell did. He'd done it because he loved her, because he's said he didn't want to keep any secrets from her. The spell was the same, and so was the answer to getting here. It was love. Not true love as she'd tried to suggest with Killian, but another type of love. She could think of only one person that she might want to feel like she wasn't keeping secrets from like she was still just the same old Emma! Regina had said it herself.

"Henry," she suggested as they all stared at the door. "She'd let Henry in. Do you have something of his on you?"

Something wouldn't be as good as skin to skin contact but if they could fool the spell for just long enough to open the door it wouldn't matter. And Regina agreed with her. She smiled proudly at the suggestion, made a small wave with her hand and suddenly a grey and red striped scarf that she'd seen Henry with before was in her hand. "I do now," she breathed. Then she reached forward, fit the scarf around the handle and paused. She bit her lower lip and pressed down on the little latch. She heard it give way with a click.

The door opened without force and Regina smiled. She'd been right; Henry was the key. "Thank you, Henry," Regina beamed. "You're our hero!" And so he was, but that was also what worried her. Regina believed that just because Emma loved him, he was safe from all bad. She was half right. Emma would protect Henry's heart, she'd keep him from all bad, the problem was how she would protect him and keep him from the bad. Because the truth Regina didn't understand was that sometimes being kept blind to evil was worse than looking it in the eyes.

* * *

 **Foreshadowing! So much foreshadowing! But alas, I could not help myself. I know it's short, and again I apologize for that these chapters just didn't break up well, but I'm happy with how this chapter turned out. Seen scenes are notorious for being a little difficult to work with, but there was just enough space here to do my thing and give the story line an extra boost, plus the bonus of a cameo by Research!Belle didn't hurt. And I had to do something about that rose because if you read Moments Taken you already know it's sudden disappearance bugged the crap out of me in Camelot, but probably more in Storybrooke.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Ladybugsmomma, and Fox24 for your reviews. I could never do this without your support, no matter if it is a long chapter or a short one. I am sorry for these short choppy chapters, believe me, it's not my intention to keep you from 5x06 any longer than necessary, but I'd rather take my time to craft a good story than rush it. In my opinion, if you want to see something rushed you could just watch season 5 five again! To my unnamed guest, thanks for pointing out the spelling mistake. I do my best to make sure that I get them all but sometimes I miss one and get super embarrassed when I find those, so I'm always happy to go back and fix it. The problem is, pointing out one word in a chapter that has thousands of words doesn't always work, give me a hint for where to look and I'm more than happy to fix it and give you credit for it. I'd rather that than have a mistake. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	23. Stealing Answers

They entered the house quickly and then slowly. When the door opened, they wasted no time entering as if afraid that they might get caught but once inside everyone stopped in the foyer so abruptly they all bumped into one another. Killian and Regina looked around as if searching for Emma. She and Robin gawked. This was a house unlike any that she'd ever seen before! And yes, she was aware that she hadn't seen that many houses in Storybrooke, just hers and Regina's really since she wouldn't count Mary Margaret's apartment as a house, but this was…magnificent!

The kitchen was to her left, a sitting room was to her right, and a staircase was right in front of her. And there…she'd nearly missed a set of stairs immediately on the left that she could only guess led out to a smaller porch or yard! The place was wonderful and open...and oddly suffocating.

It should have been light. There were enough windows, and the colors were pale enough that it should be drenched in sunlight this time of day, and in a way it was, she could see it coming in through the windows. But even with the light, it was somehow also dark and gloomy, filled with shadows. And as magnificent as it was, it was also plain. It was clean. Too clean even for her, which she thought was something she might never actually live to see and yet here she was! Everything was perfect and precise. The decorations were lovely, but that was all they were. Decorations. There was no sign of life in the house! A book sitting on a table with a marker in it, dishes in the sink, shoes or jackets by the door, blankets, rags, remotes, even sewing would have suggested that someone lived here. But there was nothing like that sitting out anywhere. If it wasn't for the darkness, then she didn't think she'd ever believe anyone lived here.

"Are you sure this is where Emma lives?" she asked her skeptically, still searching around for something that didn't look staged.

"Of course I'm sure," Regina growled looking around. "I've been here once before."

"Perhaps we should split up," Robin suggested after a moment of looking. "Two of us look for the dagger and Rumpelstiltskin, and the other two can search the basement?"

"Not a good idea!" Regina inserted quickly. "Who knows how long we'll have with her gone, we should all stay together. Besides, if that dagger is here, you can bet it'll be hidden away with protection spells that make that electric shock on the door look like a bug zapper. We should check the door together first and whatever we have time for afterwards we'll get to."

"Aye," Killian agreed. "There's the door, the one she keeps locked, the one that she didn't want me going into," he pointed out stepping toward an ordinary tan door under the stairs. For the most part appeared unassuming, but the lock looked so ancient and medieval it practically screamed "bad stuff hidden here". Of course, the benefit to that lock was that she could easily see that it was locked without touching, though not in a traditional sense. It should be an easy lock to get through and yet when Regina attempted it with Henry's scarf it wouldn't budge. "I guess she really doesn't want anyone down there," Killian observed.

"No, but the protection spell isn't as strong as the last one was," Regina commented looking the door up and down.

"Probably figured it didn't have to be," Robin added striding between them and touching the door, gingerly at first, with only his fingertips, but then he placed his whole hand on it and looked around. "People often think that if the first lock is too strong for anyone to get passed then they don't need the other locks to be half that strong and sometimes…not strong at all." He'd felt around the door frame but apparently found nothing until he saw something on the stairs that caught his interest. A loose floorboard. He pried it up without any effort at all and retrieved something small and shiny from it before tossing it to Killian.

"I knew you were the right man for this," Killian breathed holding the small thing up with admiration. A key.

It really had been that easy?!

She watched as Killian fit the key to a lock and…the lock gave a click, and slid back so that the door easily opened for them. He tossed the key back to Robin who hid it beneath the floorboard again before Killian held the door out for them. "Let's not waste any more time."

They descended. Quickly and quietly, they marched down the stairs, and she was surprised to find that while they initially had looked normal, they didn't now! Eventually the plaster and wood gave way to tan colored rock not just on the walls but also on the stairs. The light seemed to disappear into dense orange and flicker instead of remaining constant, like little flames. And when they finally turned another corner, and she could see what might be considered a basement, it was easy to see why.

This place couldn't be called "a basement" anymore. It looked more like a dungeon from their world, like something she'd have expected to find in King Arthur's castle than in Emma's new mansion. The floor was made of dirt and gravel, and there was a wrought iron gate at one end that she couldn't figure out the purpose of. The entire thing was lit with low lights and…there! In the center of the "room"…it was a sword! A jeweled sword struck into a rock. Her eyes widened as she began to put it all together. She only knew only one sword that would fit that description.

Excalibur.

"Now we know why she didn't want you down here," Regina commented in Killian's direction

"Indeed," Killian agreed. "I don't think she wants anyone to see this, and I think I know the reason why! Take a gander; Excalibur looks quite familiar."

She stooped down low to "take a gander" as Killian suggested and was surprised to find just how familiar the sword looked. Her head was spinning. She had no idea what to think about it all!

The top half looked like an ordinary, run of the mill sword, but the bottom half, the half that had been plunged into the stone…it nearly took her breath away.

"The dagger!" she exclaimed! "It's the same design, the same edges…" True, there wasn't much of it to see above the rock, but it wasn't difficult to make out the start of the black design and the jagged almost wavy edges she knew so well. Even the color of grey, the steel the blade was made of reminded her of the dagger. Excalibur and the dagger…they're one?! Or at least related in some way. But…but how? And an even better question…why?!

"What the hell does she want with this? And with Gold? What is she up to?!" Regina wondered for them, reminding her that she wasn't here to gawk or ponder but for a purpose. A purpose that may or may not be the same as theirs. Rumple. That was why she'd come here after all; that was what led them here, Killian's suggestion that he might know where Emma was hiding Rumple and possibly even the Squire! So where were they if not here? Certainly not upstairs. The house was too quiet to suggest life.

"Well, given our missing memories I'd wager it's not good," Robin added beside her, still clearly immersed in the sword.

"Let's take a better look at the damn thing and find out!" Killian suggested reaching for the sword.

"Stop!" Regina yelled before he could wrap his hand around it. He obeyed but didn't hide his frustration when he gave her a questioning glare. "I can't believe I'm about to say this, but it could be booby-trapped, you could get killed!"

"Oh…I didn't know you cared!"

There! When she swung her gaze over at Killian something else caught her eye. Killian had been right. This was the dungeon…the perfect place to keep him and yet he wasn't here. But something else was. She moved around Regina as she continued to squabble with Killian about not caring and him being "usefulish". She didn't particularly care to listen any further. What she saw was of too great importance to fully grip her attention.

There was a stool here, with a small tray that looked as though it had once held food on it. Enough for one person, not two, but it was telling enough. If Emma had a house like this why would she need to be eating down here like a pauper? And there! Something else on the floor. It was a rope! Why would Emma need a restraint for herself? She wouldn't. But she would for a prisoner.

"He was here," she concluded out loud. "Rumple was here!" She didn't know why Emma would have taken the Squire, but there was only room enough here for one, and if she had to place bets then she'd wager anything this had once been Rumple's prison. But it wasn't now. It was empty except for the three of them. So then where was she keeping him now?

"Now he's gone," Robin filled in for her. "Let's try searching the rest of the house," he suggested once more. No one argued this time. They'd seen what they had to see; they may as well look around some more and see if there was any hint as to where Emma had taken him. It couldn't be difficult. The house was so sterile that it should be easy to find something out of place so long as Emma was-

Something chirped from inside Regina's pocket, and she pulled her phone out quickly. "No time," she informed them. "It's Henry…she's on her way back."

* * *

 **Again I'm sorry for the short chapter, but I really only like to have one major scene per chapter, and then next bit with what they find afterward was just too much information to throw all in one chapter, so I had to separate it. The good news, I believe, is that the next chapter is the last one to be short like this. Not for the entire fiction of course, but for this set of odd chapters. After that, we've got a couple more chapters and then we'll be into 5x06. Not much longer now, I promise! Trust me I want to get there too.**

 **Thank you, Matty, Carlyle23, Grace5231973, Ladybugsmomma, and Kathryn Claire O'Connor, for the kind reviews that you have been leaving me! I love every word! It's so encouraging. At this point, I am trying (unsuccessfully it seems) to stay away from the spoilers because they are just so depressing. They honestly make me want to put down Moments Series at a time when I really need to be concentrating on writing 5B. Your comments tend to have the opposite effect and continue to stir me onward to complete what I started. Thank you! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	24. Out of Place Memories

No time. There was no time for anything. Regina had warned them that they might not have much time that Emma might just take Henry out for some ice cream and it seemed like that scenario was the likely one. She was on her way back, and they needed to be on their way out. Robin shut the door behind them and in Regina's hand once more was the scarf that she needed to be able to leave the house. Regina opened the door to go and-

"Hey!" she called out stopping so fast that she nearly slammed into her and Robin into both of them. "What are you doing?!"

She followed Regina's gaze and found Killian wasn't with them. He didn't answer. He was walking toward the sitting room and his attention was clearly on something else. It wasn't the sitting room exactly, but…a table in the sitting room?! It didn't seem important, hardly worth a glance, it matched everything else in the house and the only thing that sat upon it was a box positioned just right in the center of it!

No.

It wasn't.

Perhaps that was what had drawn Killian to it. On first glance it looked like it was sitting in the center of the table but it was off maybe only by a couple of inches, but enough to raise suspicions. Of everything in the house why was this box so disorderly?

Regina closed the door, quickly trotted over to him. She followed along with Robin. Killian opened the box and pulled out a small circular item with feathers hanging down from it.

"What the hell is that?" Robin asked.

"It's a dream catcher," Killian answered looking it over intently. "Baelfire gave her one similar to this a long time ago. But this…it's different."

Dreamcatcher. She'd read about those. They were meant to be hung in bedrooms or in windows. Legend said that they were once used to catch bad dreams. Child's play, she'd always assumed. It was similar to the concept of keeping a nightlight on so that children wouldn't be afraid of the dark. But Emma wasn't a child and this dream catcher was different. Different than the one that Neal had given to her. So…why was it here? It had to mean something. She had a feeling that nearly everything in this house was just for show and if she started opening trunks and drawers and cabinets she wouldn't find anything out of place but this…this appeared like it needed to be hung. If it was a decoration why wasn't it hung up somewhere? Why was it stashed away as though she was trying to hide it? What on earth would Emma want with it?

"Why would she have it?" she questioned. It simply didn't make sense unless it meant something!

"Because…they can be more than just objects of folklore," Regina pointed out snatching it out of Killian's hand for herself. "When imbued with magic they can be quite powerful. I think I know how Emma took our memories…"

When imbued with magic. She remembered now! She'd seen something eerily similar to this dreamcatcher once upon a time. It felt like forever ago. She'd gone to Rumple's shop for lunch, it was after the curse broke though they'd been living separately then, courting in an odd way. She could remember though she supposed no one here would, because Regina had been accused of murdering Archie. Emma, David, Mary Margaret they'd come to the shop thinking it was Rumple setting Regina up. But he'd helped her…he'd had Pongo, the one witness to the attack brought over to the shop and had Emma use magic to see into his memories. Emma had been young then. Or at least she'd seemed young. It had been clear that was one of the first instances she'd dealt in magic.

"A-are you saying Emma used this to take our memories?" she clarified glancing at Regina.

She shook her head. "Not all of them. Dreamcatchers aren't like a computer they wouldn't be able to hold and sort all the information separately. These memories belong to someone in this town, the rest of them she must be hiding somewhere. Upstairs maybe?"

"Why would she keep this one here?" Robin questioned.

"Could be any number of reasons. She could have been using them recently or maybe there is a special reason she's guarding this one. Maybe someone saw something they shouldn't and she wants it kept secret."

Special. Maybe it wasn't what but who.

"Henry," she concluded again. "She misses Henry and there's no protection spell over these memories. If they're important she'd want this guarded not hidden. Maybe they belong to Henry."

"Not a bad idea actually," Regina pointed out. "And finding out won't exactly be difficult. Dark One magic or not even I can break into something as low magic as this."

"As soon as Emma realizes the dreamcatcher is missing she'll know we were here," she pointed out.

"That's just going to have to be a risk I'm willing to take," Regina commented putting the thing within the depths of her jacket. "I'll set extra protection spells against her tonight just in case."

"How did you know it was there?" Robin questioned looking over at Killian. He wasn't staring at the Dreamcatcher, at least not at the moment. He was looking down at the box, staring at it as if it was the source of the deadly disease that Emma had caughtKillian shrugged still staring at the thing as though it was the source of the deadly disease that Emma had caught. Though maybe it was only proof. Hiding things, keeping secrets, using Dark Magic. It wasn't something that was new to her because of Rumple; she knew that was just what Dark Ones did no matter how much they loved the people in their lives. But for them, for those that loved Emma, the one who had once been Savior instead of Dark One, she understood it was a difficult pill to swallow.

"I don't know," Killian muttered. "Maybe it was just the pirate in me. It just seemed wrong."

"It is wrong," Regina added. "This is dripping with Dark Magic. Can you feel it too?" she asked glancing over at Robin. He shook his head. It wasn't surprised. She was used to Dark Magic, and she couldn't feel anything either, but that wasn't exactly what drew her attention to it in the first place either.

"Or maybe you just have good eyes," she suggested. "It wasn't centered properly, and everything else here seems to be perfectly positioned. It was odd."

Killian snorted, and spell over him seemed broken. He was his normal piraty self again. "There, see. Good eyes. I told you it was the pirate in me."

"How you found it doesn't matter," Regina commented suddenly stepping away from the table and picking up the scarf. "It'll be the death of all of us if we don't leave this place before Emma gets back." She was right. They were running out of time. Regina quickly led the way back over to the door, used the scarf to open it up again and usher them outside. It was an abrupt ending, but the only ending they could manage at the moment.

When the door closed behind them, her eyes scanned up and down the road as if she expected to see the familiar yellow bug pulling up in front of the house at any moment.

"So what exactly did we glean from this little misadventure?" Killian questioned as they walked back down the sidewalk toward Regina's car. "We didn't find the crocodile and the dreamcatcher hardly tells us anything."

"But we did find the sword," Regina answered sliding back into the seat. "We got into the basement, and that was what you wanted, remember? It was your goal."

 _His goal,_ she wanted to scream. Getting into the basement was what Killian wanted to do to figure out what Emma was hiding. Her goal was unfulfilled. Where was Rumpelstiltskin? They'd been hoping to kill two birds with one stone by breaking in there and yet still her husband was nowhere to be found. She picked the bell jar up off of the car floor where she'd left it. The glass melted away at her thought to reveal her beautiful enchanted rose, glowing and healthy. But all of a sudden she felt like it was months ago, when Zelena was on the loose, just after Neal had died, and Rumple was nowhere to be found, but she'd known he was alive rather than dead. Her mind wanted to give into those feelings, to curl into a ball and start crying all over again as she had then. Why did this keep happening to them?

"Besides," Regina commented, "the dreamcatcher only tells us nothing now. I'll have a look at it while you question Arthur tonight at Mary Margaret's version of a non-magical ball."

"Question Arthur?" she asked squeezing her jar closer to her chest. That name seemed to have appeared out of nothing.

"All the prophecies say that whoever holds the sword will rule Camelot. First person to ask about it would be the King of Camelot who reported it stolen in the first place!"

* * *

 **So, Hook finding the Dreamcatcher and Regina saying it was surrounded by Dark Magic. Totally meant to be foreshadowing. After the shocker that was 5x08 I was hoping, really, really hoping, that when I rewatched 5A to write Moments I was going to find some moments of foreshadowing to Hook's Darkness because it just seemed really unlikely to me that he was the Dark One, and there wouldn't be some hints to it. Alas, I didn't find as many as I would have liked. I found one in 5x08 when they go to catch Arthur and Killian mentions killing him, I suppose it was possible that some of the hostility in 5x08 could be blamed on it, and then there was this one small gem that wasn't explored. Hook finds the Dreamcatcher. It might not have meant anything in the show, and I could be reading too much into it, but here I wanted to show that Hook senses the magic and is a little creeped out about it until Belle mentions the alternative. What do you think?**

 **Thank you, Fox24, Teresa Martin, Carlyle23, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Rumbellefan, Grace5231973, and Ladybugsmomma, for your wonderful and encouraging comments. It's helpful in getting passed these spoilers as I continue to write the 5B fiction. Though I will say that I think it's a good thing that I already had all the "good" stuff for it written before those spoilers came out. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	25. Lies Don't Make Truth

When they got back to town they were surprised to see just how different it all looked. Main Street wasn't Main Street anymore, and it certainly didn't resemble a ball or a dance. It looked like a carnival. Game stalls, food trucks, bales of hay sectioned off a portion of the street that was empty and she supposed people could dance there if they truly wanted to, but it certainly wasn't the dance party atmosphere she'd been expecting.

"A bloody Carnival is Mary Margaret's idea of a dance?" Killian blanched.

"She's Snow White," Regina excused looking around just as shocked as she was. "But it is a bit excessive. Even for her…" she stared as a man with overgrown pants and a tall hat rode by them on a unicycle.

"Regina!" they all picked up their heads and saw Mary Margaret, with Neal in her arms, striding toward them in the best eager run she could manage considering she was holding a baby. "What do you think? I asked Herman Bing if he wouldn't mind stopping by and he agreed. Most of the stalls are his."

"The circus…" Regina mused. "He wouldn't chip in for the flying elephant?"

"There's a flying elephant?" Robin gawked.

"Enchanted feather," Regina countered. "Where's Arthur?"

"Ah…not here yet. He went back to the camp with David to gather everyone up. They should be here by sundown and then we can really get started. The party is for them after all. Why?"

"We need to talk to him, as soon as possible. It's urgent!"

"That's what 'as soon as possible' means, Guyliner. We just broke into Emma's house-"

"You did what?!" Mary Margaret blanched.

"There was a door I noticed in the house that Emma kept locked," Killian explained. "I figured there was some reason she was keeping it locked and that might be where she's keeping the crocodile."

"Was it?"

She shook her head sadly as every fear crept back into her mind. Why had she left the shop yesterday? Why couldn't he have been in the basement? She'd take back every moment of indecision, every moment she'd wondered if she wanted to see him awake to have him in her sights now. What was it going to take to bring him home this time? She was so tired.

And yet she remembered, how Mary Margaret had nearly broken down in the pawn shop just after Emma had become the Dark One and disappeared. She could remember her confessing that she didn't have the strength to go through it all again, that she didn't want to continually be chasing after her children! Suddenly she understood that feeling all too well. When was it ever going to be simple? When was she going to have a life that wasn't about rushing off to solve the latest disaster? When did she get a vacation? When would she know if she wanted Rumpelstiltskin to take that vacation with her?

Killian finished the tale of what they'd discovered at Emma's house and all the while Mary Margaret's face continued to fall. When they arrived at the dreamcatcher Regina had taken she gave a little sniffle but held her head up high and didn't shed a tear. "I knew letting her do magic was a bad idea. Even then."

"Emma doing magic isn't the problem. Emma being the Dark One is. But we're going to fix it. I can't be sure whose memories are in here but I know she wouldn't have been keeping it in the house if it wasn't important in some way. We'll figure out what's inside of it while you figure out what she's doing with Excalibur. We'll get her back," Regina assured her.

They talked about Henry for a moment, about where he was and if anyone had seen or heard from him apart from informing to Regina about Emma's whereabouts. Mary Margaret informed them that she'd heard from him, he was planning on coming to the "block party" as she called it. Regina accepted this and decided to go home with Robin. Granny had been watching Roland for far too long, they could put him to bed, Regina could investigate the dreamcatcher and they could question Arthur, killing two birds with one stone.

"What about Rumple?" she questioned before Regina left. "He's still out there somewhere. He might know something."

Regina and Mary Margaret exchanged glances. "The chances of Emma sharing her plan with him-"

"If she needs him to do something then she has to tell him what to do!" she pointed out before Regina could say anything.

"Let's just…let's just see what we can shake free with Arthur and the dreamcatcher first and we'll worry about Gold later."

She opened her mouth but they'd already begun talking again. She understood them wanting to move forward with the clues that they had, truly she did but "worrying later" wasn't as simple as Regina made it sound. She couldn't worry later. Together or apart it just wasn't that simple. Not for her.

But it was for them. That much was clear. Regina left not long after that to learn what she could about the memories in the dreamcatcher. She returned to Granny's to get something to eat for the first time in nearly a day and put her rose in the safety of her room in the inn. She didn't trust Arthur, or his wife. She didn't want them anywhere near her rose.

The sky darkened, lights on the stalls lit up the street, and citizens of Storybrooke came flocking to the odd place without invitation according to Mary Margaret. "No better place to attract attention than Main Street," she said without an ounce of pride that she'd first had when they arrived. The flame inside of her seemed to have gone out. It was Emma. She knew it was. It had to be. "Mary Margaret-"

"Mary Margaret!" they all looked across the lot to see trucks and fifteen passenger vans filled to the brim with people in clothing not of this world. The citizens of Camelot. Or most of them anyway. She wasn't sure. She'd not yet actually been out to the camp site and this seemed like a very small amount of people for an entire Kingdome to be swallowed whole by a curse. But then what did she know? Her memories of Camelot ended before they really started. For all she knew that castle was the only thing there really was to see of the Kingdom.

David led the way down into an alley and parked his truck, the other vans, driven by dwarves naturally, parked behind him as if it were a parade. Doors opened, women, men, and even children filed out of them before…

David, face smiling, hand on the back of King Arthur walked them all over to his wife. "Looks great," he stated leaning down to kiss her cheek. "I've promised our friends here a night of fun that will make them forget they were ever cursed."

Doubtful. If it were her, if she'd spent her entire life in Camelot and was just now seeing the spectacle that awaited them…she doubted they'd forget they were from another land. If anything this might just make it worse. And the way Killian pushed his way forward and stared down King Arthur…she doubted that was going to help anything. "We need to talk," Killian grunted coming nearly toe to toe with the man.

Arthur straightened. "Have care how you speak in the presence of a King…pirate!"

"How about we all just take a breath," David interjected stepping between the two men. She watched as Guin reached out and took hold of Arthur's hand to pull him back a step or two.

"This concerns Emma," Killian growled in David's direction. "And them. All of us."

"So let's sit down and talk about it like civilized people do," she encouraged from her spot by his side. He agreed. Not with words or even a look, he just turned around and began walking toward the entertainment. There was an empty picnic table nearby and Killian sat down on one end before making a sweeping motion with his arms, indicating that they were supposed to join him. They did. Mary Margaret and David sat beside him, she took the opposite corner beside Guinevere and Arthur sat right in front of Killian.

"You've been hiding something," Killian accused.

Arthur stared him down for a moment, then a wide grin broke over his face that reminded her of that horrible man Isaac, when they'd been in the storybook and he'd smiled at her. "I have nothing to hide," he stated. "Ask me anything."

"I don't need to ask you anything," Killian struck back. "I've seen Excalibur for myself."

Arthur's smile disappeared and his eyes went wide. "Excalibur?!" he whispered in an an angry dark tone. The way he looked at Killian it was as if he was waiting for a trick to reveal itself, as if he didn't believe what he was saying.

"Trapped in a stone in a basement," Killian added for authenticity she assumed.

"Well then we need to get it back at once!" Arthur insisted immediately. "It would be disastrous if the Dark One took possession of it!"

"Doesn't have anything to do with its striking resemblance to the Dark One Dagger," Killian questioned looking at him without his expression fading.

She watched Arthur and Guin. She did it for a reason. She wanted to see how they reacted, to see if she could glean any information from it at all. Guinevere looked startled at the accusation, panicked almost. As if she'd just been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. Arthur on the other hand looked more shocked at them than guilty. "How did you know about the dagger?"

"I spent a lifetime trying to end the Dark One's existence. I know much about the dagger, what I don't know about is your blade! Care to enlighten us?"

No. She could see that in his eyes right away. He didn't want to tell them anything and for a moment she feared that he wouldn't, that he'd overturn the very table they sat on and run as far away as possible before he could be caught! She prepared herself for a fight, but then-

"Yes," he finally spat out. "There's a reason they resemble each other, they were forged as one weapon! And then broken in two. I've spent years trying to reunite them!"

"That's why you were so interested in the dagger when you arrived!" Mary Margaret nodded with understanding. She was confused. It was news to her! Arthur had wanted the dagger? And no one thought to mention this to her long ago? Though she supposed that she couldn't exactly blame them. She had spent the majority of her time working on Rumple. Still she would have thought that she would have at least learned that!

"I apologize for not telling you sooner but I had to make sure I could trust you! The restored weapon has great power, it can eradicate all Dark Magic forever."

"That's a good thing," David pointed out. That was a magnificent claim. But she wasn't so sure. It was an odd feeling. He hid something so he could know whether or not they were trustworthy. The irony was that it had the opposite effect. Now she felt like they were the ones not to be trusted. She didn't like anything he had to say, and frankly didn't want to listen to it. Why should they believe him now?

"Of course," Arthur agreed. "But in the wrong hands it can also destroy all light magic!"

"That's her plan," Killian muttered beside them. "To snuff out the light forever." Was it? Was that really the plan? It seemed so random! It seemed so far from the Emma that she and everyone else knew it just didn't seem possible! Though maybe that was the problem. This wasn't an Emma that they knew.

"What happened in Camelot?" Mary Margaret questioned aloud for all of them. "How did Emma fall so far?" No one answered. They couldn't. Because thanks to Emma, no one knew.

* * *

 **Belle seems shocked that Arthur was interested in the dagger. Why? Because I was! I watched this season at least three times through and fun fact, if Arthur was interested in the Dark One Dagger, it was never brought up in Storybrooke. Now that doesn't mean it's a deleted scene of course, how likely is that? I don't know. I just get frustrated when they can't even seem to keep their own story straight. If it was a deleted scene, this is only episode 5, there should have been plenty of time in the editing of the previous episodes to find that scene and say "oh, make sure this stays in the episode because it is important later! Besides that, I really hate this chapter, or maybe it's just this seen scene. There wasn't much I could do with it and felt that it made the end very choppy. It is my hope that at least the first half of it is decent.**

 **Thank you, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Teresa Martin, Grace5231973, Carlyle23, Fox24, and Ladybugsmomma, for your very kind reviews. Good news! The next chapter is the last of the 5x05 chapters! Yay! There is a Rumbelle reunion in our future! Also, not to get hopes up but my second favorite Neal/Belle conversation is up next and I hope that you'll like it! My all time favoriall-timeBelle conversation is the chapter second from the end, so it's a while until we get there. But the next conversation, it's one that I really like personally! As always, Peace and Happy Reading!**


	26. Rumpelstiltskin and Belle

As far as the looks on the faces of those who were from Camelot went, the night had been a success. Everyone seemed happy and smiling as they ate their popcorn and cotton candy and left with small stuffed bears and giant sunglasses in their hands. Even Henry had been happy.

He was a prince. Truly. Despite the terrible subject they'd been discussing they had all stopped to wonder, as did half the carnival, when Henry, quite literally rode in on a chestnut horse and presented it to a teenage girl who was dressed in pink.

"First crush…I knew he had a girlfriend," David had muttered as they'd watched.

"Seems like more than that," Killian added as she watched Henry present the reins to the girl and…her father, she assumed.

"Sir Morgan's daughter," Arthur identified. "Viola?"

"Violet," Guinevere corrected, saying the first thing she'd heard her say since this morning. Still, she'd said it in such an odd way, as if completely and totally detached from what was happening. Even Mary Margaret who was worried to death about Emma had managed a smirk. Guinevere, something about her hazy expression said that something was off about her. Was she just tired today? Or was she like this every day?

It didn't matter then. It would later but all that seemed to matter to anyone at the table was the way that Violet stepped forward and kissed Henry on the cheek as her father ushered the horse away. The pair continued to walk and talk for the rest of the evening, and it seemed, just like that, that their conversation around the picnic table had ended. Arthur and Guinevere slipped away, and they all determined that until she could do more research and either prove or disprove Arthur's theory about Excalibur's ability to banish magic, Dark or Light, there wasn't much any of them could do. And yet…

The moment she returned to her shop, no matter how dead set she'd been on researching the spell that Arthur was talking about, every thought faded.

Why was her front door open?

Why was there an arrow sticking out from the door?

Turn and run. Call David. Get help. That was what she should have done. But she didn't. Instead, she took a breath and pushed the door open further, but she didn't step inside. She had enough sense not to do that just yet. Instead, she listened for a heartbeat. Then ten because of just how fast her heart was pounding. She didn't hear anything. Nothing that made her think anyone was actually around. So she reached inside the door, felt around to the little crevice by the baseboard where she'd once hidden a potion that would render the person it came in contact with unconscious and turned on the lights.

Nothing.

She didn't see anything. She didn't hear anything. No one scurried out back for the door, no one shifted their weight at the shock of the light. It was as if no one was there. So…did that mean they'd left, or were they just hiding? Rumple?

She glanced at the arrow again. No. She couldn't think of reason that Rumple would have an arrow and upon closer examination it wasn't something she recognized. She'd seen Robin and Mary Margaret and because of Will, even the Merry Men arm themselves with arrows enough to know that each one varied between the maker. This one wasn't made by anyone she knew. So then who?

She pulled the arrow free from the door with a couple of good tugs and held it in her hand as though it was a weapon. It was sharp; maybe it would be a weapon if she found anyone.

If…

She moved carefully through the shop. Fortunately, she knew it like she knew the back of her hand. No one could hide here from her here, not easily at least. She knew all the best places. And no one was in them. The front room was clear, the back room was clear, even the attic was empty. The other two doors were just as secure as she'd left them. And everything else?

She glanced around. Merlin's journal was right where she left it. The translation was still there as well, as little of it as she'd managed to do before life interfered. The safe was untouched. Not difficult. As far as she knew, there were only two keys in the world, and anyone else would need magic or tools to pry it open, it showed no sign of either. The only other thing of high value then was Rumple's black bag.

She ran quickly into the back to retrieve it and found that it was perfect. There wasn't anything missing! Everything right down to the burned doll was still there and-

The doll…the trap door!

She glanced to the side to see that the trap door was no longer there on the floor. Locked? But the only way to hide the door was magic. Or, of course, to lock it. And to do that they'd need to-

She spun around and opened the cabinet doors quickly and her jaw dropped open in a gasp of shock. Her chipped cup. It was gone. She examined the shelves carefully, she racked her brain, trying to remember, trying to think if she'd moved it. But she hadn't. Not in her memory anyway.

So…someone had come in here, broken down the door with nothing but an arrow, and taken her chipped cup but nothing else? That made no sense! That cup didn't do anything special beyond open the trap door, and she supposed it was possible for someone to open the trap door, take all of that stuff, and then take the cup so that she'd never know…but that was useless. Why would someone just take the cup?! The only sentimental value it held was for her and Rumple! Why would Emma want it? If it even was Emma! An arrow wasn't exactly in the style of the Dark One, but theatrics were. Still…what would she want with it?

And what would she want with a dwarf axe? Or Excalibur?! Emma wanting to remove all light magic, it just seemed so…out of place. She wasn't sure she could trust any of it.

Not until she found Rumpelstiltskin.

So be it. If locating her husband was the key to all of this then that was what she was going to have to do. She wasn't magical, but it was surprising just how good at magic she could be these days when the motivation was right!

So she took off her jacket and set to work. She remade the locator potion, just in case Archie was right and the batch was wrong. He wasn't. The one that she made had the same effect on the doll that his had, it simply rose into the air and then nearly turned to ash when it burned and dropped to the ground again motionless and useless. Rumpelstiltskin was still blocked from her. Or magic.

Alright. Maybe she could break it. Magical blockades weren't impenetrable; they worked like walls to keep simple things like locator spells from finding an individual, so maybe all she needed to do was hit the spell hard enough with so many that one of them would get through. This entire shop was filled with things that he owned. That might be enough.

No. She dismissed that almost entirely. She could remember reading two instances of a magical blockade being so overwhelmed that it had faltered and in that case both the wizards that had formed them had been amateurs. Without their weakness people wouldn't even know how magical blocks worked. So then maybe if she tried tracking something else, something different, something Emma wouldn't think to conceal. Something close to him?

That wasn't a possibility. She didn't know where he was to find anything that might be with him! A Tracking Potion wouldn't work on him and it wouldn't work unless she knew of something close by and for all she knew he was imprisoned in a bubble of air at the bottom of the sea!

A bubble of air…there was always magic. Emma's magic! There was something that she could be sure was around him! Emma's magic! All she had to do was track Emma's magic and then that would lead her-

Probably to Emma's house. Which would lead her right into the heart of the beast and possibly even her death.

It was nearly four in the morning when she groaned, sank down into a chair and rested her head over her arms on the table. Her eyelids were so heavy but the rest of her felt so light. How was that possible?

"Oh Neal…what am I missing?!" she questioned, trying to picture anything that might help her stay awake and regain some of her focus.

"Off the top of my head? Sleep, food, rest…all that stuff that comes with peace of mind." She smirked and imagined him sitting there on the cot where his father had once been. Elbows on his kneeds, hands together, head bowed. That was Neal. Her Neal.

"Peace of mind…" she commented. "What's that like?"

"Don't know, never really managed to find it myself. But I imagine it looks a lot like a good night's sleep, three square meals, less worry lines, and more boredom."

"Sounds like prison."

"Only most of it." She smirked and thought for another moment about what he'd said. A good night's sleep was out of the question, it was nearly morning. But a nap on the other hand…nap or work. Both would do her good.

"Nap would do you better," Neal commented.

She shook her head as she glared at him. "Get out of my head."

"Can't really help that…I kinda live there these days."

"So by telling me to sleep you are really saying that I want to sleep," she figured.

Neal shrugged his shoulders and swayed back and forth as he made a face, as if going over what she'd said again in his mind before nodding. "Yeah, something like that. Also, if I know my father would tell you to do the same, then you know it too."

Sleep did sound good right now. It was just so difficult to justify it in the midst of what was happening. In the midst of what had happened. "You'd be proud of Henry," she commented softly. "He's got his first girlfriend and everything."

Neal was quiet for a moment then finally offered a small nod and looked up with pink rimmed eyes. "Is he happy?" he asked choking on his words.

Emotion. Sometimes that was what made it so difficult to remember that Neal wasn't actually here, talking to her. Maybe she preferred to think that he wasn't sometimes. Like these special visits were more than just her tired delusional mind reaching out to her. She liked just thinking they were special visits from a friend.

"I like to think so," she responded. "He certainly didn't look unhappy."

Neal snorted and gave a small nod at the comment. "I guess if he's got a girlfriend I'd be worried if he was unhappy."

She nodded back. That made sense. "Yeah, I…I guess so."

"Why am I here for that?" Neal asked looking over at her. "Why do you need me to talk about Henry?"

"Do I really need an excuse?" she asked. "He's my grandson, you're his father. Shouldn't we want to talk about him?"

"Yeah, no, I'm not denying that it's just…we are here to talk about you and what you want right…so why did Henry come up? I mean, you were the one that wasn't ready to call him 'grandson' so why is he still on your mind?"

"No reason I just…I just wish you could see it, is all."

"Is it? Is that all?"

Suddenly she felt her skin crawl as he looked in in the eye and she had the feeling that he was rifling through her head again. Well…she supposed he was right. That wasn't all that was on her mind.

"I want Rumple to see it too someday," she admitted quietly. "I don't know a lot about what I want and need but…I know I want that. He deserves to see his Grandson happy like he is now."

"So…again…why am I here for that? Henry sounds fine, he's got plenty of guides."

She sighed and felt the urge to stand and walk away from him, banish him from her mind because she was tired of this game that he was playing, the game that her own mind was playing with her! Why did she need Neal if she already knew the answer?!

"Neal, if you know that I know and want a specific answer then that means you already know it. Why don't you tell me?!"

"It's not the same if I tell you. You have to say it for yourself!" She felt like she was shaking. Impossible because this conversation wasn't actually happening like she thought that it was but all the same she felt like her nerves were on fire. "Oh come on…" Neal prodded. "You'll feel better when you say it." Would she? Would she really feel better when it was just out there in the universe, for all the world to hear? "Not really all the world, just you and me which is, when you think about it, just you really."

He had a point she couldn't refute. And she supposed it wasn't something she was already thinking. She just…she just didn't like to think about how far she'd fallen. "I know that I want Rumple to see who Henry has become. But I'm not sure I want him to see who I've become," she admitted finally. When she glanced up Neal was staring at her again with a proud smirk on his face. He nodded as if she should go on. So she did. "There was a time I was a lot like Henry, you know. I saw hope and true love…happy endings everywhere! Now I have a hard time even seeing the potential for it. I don't know how I feel about letting Rumple see how far I've come when he puts so much of his faith and hope in me."

"Maybe that's where you need to start," Neal suggested. "Maybe you each need to have your own faith and hope instead of being so dependent on one another."

She rolled her eyes. It was good in theory but was that really how it was supposed to work. "Try telling him that. And Mary Margaret and David don't separate themselves like that."

"Yeah…Snow White and Prince Charming might not be the best examples. Neither are Regina and Robin Hood for that matter. You and dad…you're different. You have been from the beginning. Maybe you need to stop doing what other's do and start doing what works for you. Wasn't that what worked so well to begin with?"

Yes. When they'd both put everything aside and focused on each other first, when she defended him against every accusation true or not, when he protected her secrets or not…things worked that way. But…was it really supposed to be that way. Where husbands and wives really supposed to be blind to each other's misdeeds? Maybe that was why their marriage had failed so bad, she'd tried to be the epitome of what she always believed marriage was and not kept their uniqueness. Maybe she'd lost him when she lost herself.

"There is no perfect couple," Neal pressed. "Not even David and Mary Margaret agree all the time. Maybe each couple has to find and keep their unique qualities and if you'll recall…marrying a Dark One is pretty uniquely understanding."

She smirked. Yes, she remembered when he'd said that. When he'd told her that she saw the good in people that didn't deserve it. She didn't know that she could say that about herself recently. Quite the opposite actually. Sometimes she felt like all she suspected was bad.

"I didn't stay that way for long after we were married. At the first sign of Darkness…I'd gotten rid of him before I even really knew what he'd done! And I know I said it was for Henry, and part of it was, but…I know there was more to it than that. I wish I could be Henry again. I wish I could be who I used to be and he could be who he used to be and we could just make it work!

"Maybe you can. If you get that uniqueness back, then maybe you maintain it by being who you were together, Rumpelstiltskin and Belle, instead of…I don't know…Rumbelle has a nice ring to it."

"Rumbelle?!" she blanched at the name. Where on earth had he, and her by proxy, come up with something like that?!

"Yeah, it's catchy don't you think?"

She smiled and shook her head. No. She much preferred Rumpelstiltskin and Belle. Not Rumpelstiltskin. Not Belle. Not…Rumbelle…Rumpelstiltskin and Belle.

That tale had been a classic.

* * *

 **Ah...Neal/Belle therapy. I feel as though we covered a lot of ground with this particular conversation, got to the heart of a lot of issues. Neal has really helped her do that not just in this fiction but Moments Taken as well. A lot of this has been making the same progress all over again. I also hope that no one thinks the little easter egg at the end there is too corny. It honestly just happened when I was writing it, and I decided t keep it, but if you think it's too much, I'll remove it.**

 **Thank you, Hotgirlow, Fox24, Grace5231973, Carlyle23, Teresa Martin, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, and Ladybugsmomma, for your reviews! You all are too kind, and I truly do hope that you will enjoy this chapter. But I have a sneaking suspicion that you truly will enjoy what is to come. Buckle up ya'll, 5x06 is coming up next! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	27. Tall Tales Come to Life

She was tired of her phone acting as her alarm clock. Today was the same as yesterday, the only difference was that instead of waking up in a towel on a bed to a phone call, she woke up fully clothed on a cot to a text message. It was mid-morning. And she couldn't believe that she'd managed to sleep as long as she had and yet still felt unendingly tired. No. She couldn't afford to be tired, she couldn't afford to sleep any longer. That was clear not only from the message on her phone but also the items she'd left out on the table.

She sat up on her cot and stretched for a moment before she pulled the blankets off of her and went digging through her bag for her phone. The message was from Regina and while she did roll her eyes and consider ignoring it for a moment she also was quick to remember that she couldn't. As much as she didn't like it, somehow she and Regina had ended up on the same team. And though what they were working on seemed different, Excalibur and King Arthur, while she worked on Rumple, both problems were tied to the same source. Emma.

So with a disheartened sigh, she flipped open her phone and read the text message. _"My office, 1 hour, important!"_

One hour, Regina's office, for something important but unknown. She sighed again and flipped the phone shut before reaching into the air and stretching again. One hour didn't give her a lot of time to wake up, but it gave her just enough to hide her exhaustion and any evidence of it. She put the books away, put the translation in a safe place, put all the ingredients back into his black bag of tricks, and then finally gave up on the doll. Three failed potions and two fires meant that the doll could hardly be called a doll anymore, it was nothing but a pile of ash. So she swept the remains into a dust pail, happy that at least she'd thought to use the doll for those potions instead of Neal's baby blanket, and when the shop was finally clean, she went down the street to Granny's. She showered, changed, checked to make sure the rose was still just as healthy and strong as it had been last night, then finally set off for Regina's.

She wasn't there alone. The moment that she stepped inside the mayor's office she saw Mary Margaret and David pull up too and the three of them went up the stairs together and met Killian in the hallway. "We all got the same message?" he commented waving his phone in the air.

David nodded and opened the door. "Let's find out why."

The why was actually very simple. Emma. Emma was the reason they were there but she wasn't sure she could ever have predicted why. "I took a look at the memories in the dream catcher last night."

"Were they Henry's?" she asked.

Regina shook her head as she stood before them and the look in her eyes told her that whatever she'd seen, whoever she'd seen wasn't good. "That girl he's got a crush on-"

"Violet?" Mary Margaret inserted.

Regina nodded. "What the catcher told me…Emma's gone too far. I don't know why, but I saw her rip Violet's heart from her chest in Camelot and tell her to break Henry's heart."

The shock in the room was palpable by its silence. No one gasped or asked if it was real. It was as though a bomb had just gone off. Emma took Violet's heart. And she ordered Violet to hurt Henry. The silence was a reasonable response. She couldn't think of anything to say! Not in a situation like this. Not when Regina had declared only yesterday that was the one thing she still trusted Emma with. Rumple had done some terrible things as the Dark One, but he'd never done it with the direct intention that she get hurt.

"Violet's horse went missing yesterday, apparently Henry enlisted Emma's help to get it back for her. My theory is she probably let it out and got it lost herself…part of her attempt to make it up to Henry. He might not know but Emma did and it might have worked…but Henry saw the whole thing in the Dreamcatcher."

"How?!" Mary Margaret cried, piercing the silence with her voice.

"He was standing right behind me after he got back from the carnival. I didn't even hear him come in."

"Right after he'd rode in like a hero…her very own white knight…" Mary Margaret sighed.

"Well, whatever Emma's reasons in Camelot her plan worked here too. Henry's devastated. Emma stopped by last night to see him and he shut himself up in his room, wouldn't even let Roland in to read a story."

"Hang on…" she said shaking her head because as upset about Henry as she was she was worried about another very important thing right now. "You said Emma took her heart. Did she give it back?"

Regina shook her head. "I can't be sure. In the memory Emma said she'd give it back to her and didn't appear to be too far gone then but actions speak louder than words. Nothing in the dreamcatcher suggested she had, but after the incident nothing about the girl's behavior suggests panic or worry, nothing even suggested she knew about it."

"So Emma erased the memories," she concluded for her.

Regina hesitated but then gave a reluctant shrug. "Most likely yes. She might still have the heart she might not."

So they were back to square one. Henry was hurt. The memories told them nothing. And Emma was still collecting odd things that she couldn't find rhyme or reason for.

"Did she mention Rumple when she came to see you last night?" she asked hopefully.

"No," Regina answered. "But for what it's worth I accused her of kidnapping him and she didn't argue she hadn't. Still no luck finding him?"

"Obviously not. But someone did break into the shop yesterday," she blurt out. "I didn't notice until after the party.

"What?! Why didn't you call anyone for help?" David demanded.

"No one was there when I got back. There was an arrow through the door and nothing was missing except for my chipped cup. At least nothing that I can tell."

"Chipped cup…what would Emma want with that?" Mary Margaret questioned.

"Blackmail," Regina stated. "I've seen him do just about anything to keep that thing in it's perfectly damaged condition."

"But an arrow…that doesn't exactly sound like Emma's style," Killian fought. "More like one of the Merry Men. Are you sure it wasn't one of them? You did date one for a while."

"Will isn't in town anymore," she pointed out with frustration, her heart pounding that he'd brought it up because for the first time ever it felt like her dirty little secret, an embarrassment. Another sure sign that it was a mistake but that was an emotion for another, less stressful time. "And even if he was I can't think of any reason he or anyone else besides me and Rumpelstiltskin would want that teacup."

"But with that teacup in hand Gold would be putty in Emma's hand, he'd do anything she wanted him to."

"So what's she want him to do then?" Killian questioned.

Regina, David, Mary Margaret…all of them had only one answer and that was no answer at all. Three weeks into this and they'd discovered almost nothing. It was disappointing.

"It's not much consolation," Regina went on, "but I know that we freed Merlin when we were Camelot. Apparently it's why Emma needed Violet to break Henry's heart though I can't figure out the connection!"

"We found Merlin back in Camelot!" Mary Margaret blanched with the rest of them. They found Merlin while they were in Camelot? No not just found. 'Freed him', was what Regina had said. Freed him from what?

"Emma let it slip last night when she tried to visit Henry," Regina confirmed again. They'd found Merlin and freed him. How was that possible? How wasn't it possible?! Anything was possible in six weeks time, they'd just never know it until they got their memories back and found the other dreamcatchers!

" _If_ we found that bloody Sorcerer why the hell didn't he destroy the bloody Darkness in Emma?" Killian questioned aloud. He may as well. She was certain they were all thinking it.

"You're asking the wrong person," Regina reminded him. None of them knew. The truth was that she'd love to believe that they'd found Merlin and maybe even "freed him" despite the fact that she had no idea what they would have to free the most powerful sorcerer in the world from. But it seemed impossible to her, even with the declaration she could remember King Arthur giving them in Camelot. Merlin had been lost for hundreds of years! People had spent lifetimes looking for him. Could they really have found and freed him in only six weeks?! Emma could have been lying, leading them on.

"Well we can't very well ask him!" Killian pointed out.

"That's exactly what we're going to do," Regina corrected, reaching behind her and holding up that she'd been hiding all this time…a mushroom. No. A toadstool.

Crimson Crown!

In all the excitement she'd nearly forgotten! Robin and Killian had told her yesterday that they'd found it! Remarkable. The myth was real.

"Crimson Crown, you figured out how to make the communication spell work," David assumed as Killian stepped forward and took it.

"Let's just say seeing Emma rip Violet's heart from her chest gave me all the motivation I need," she said crossing her arms over front of her.

"How does this thing work, do we simply speak to it?" Killian asked holding it up. She nearly laughed. Of course not. Magic was never that simple.

"It's not that easy," Regina corrected reaching forward and taking it from him. "Not just anyone can summon Merlin, he'll only appear to someone who's been chosen by him." _"Communication only possible when selected communication already established"_ , she recalled that baffling phrase like it was yesterday. So that was what that was about. For people that weren't hundreds of years old something like that wouldn't be a problem. For people who were…the list of people they could use dropped significantly. There was only one person she could think of.

"Arthur," David muttered. "Merlin delivered all the prophecies to him."

Regina gave a small nod. "So what do you say sheriff?"

"Already on my way," David said before marching out of the office she could only assume to find Arthur. But something was wrong. She didn't like this, their plan…it didn't seem to come full circle! They didn't know what Emma was doing so they were going to ask Merlin?! A man they couldn't remember meeting?! A man they may or may not have freed?! And Crimson Crown…it was a myth! Yes, she could see it in Regina's hand clear as day, but it wasn't a myth because it was common and frequently used! Just the opposite! Regina might have an idea but she had no proof at all the idea would work! That phrase in the book…it could have meant anything and surely Regina had never used this before. It might work. But it might not. Even if they got in touch with Merlin, the mysterious wizard that had been missing for centuries, there was no promise he'd know anything or that Emma had succeeded in freeing him. This might just waste time when there was someone else out there whose chance of knowing Emma's plan was greater!

"Wait! Wait!" she called stopping David. "Why are we wasting our time with Merlin when there's someone here who can help us?!" she demanded.

"Who?" Mary Margaret questioned looking utterly confused. Was she really the only one thinking about this? Again?!

"Rumple!" she insisted. Emma kidnapped him for a reason, she'd have to tell him what that reason was! Maybe. It didn't matter. He'd seen Emma at home in her own house and been the Dark One for centuries, surely he was a better chance at figuring this out than a sorcerer who'd been lost for hundreds of years.

"If he hadn't brought the Darkness back to Storybrooke, we wouldn't even be standing here right now!" Regina argued.

It was a pathetic argument. It felt like a slap in the face. She couldn't lay all of that on Rumple's feet. It was loose logic at best. Emma wasn't his fault! Not entirely at least! Yes, she'd freed him by sending him over the line and yes he'd come back but he hadn't asked Emma to take on the Darkness. He didn't tell Emma to take their memories, he didn't tell her to curse them all and send the Fury after Robin. Emma's actions were her own! Emma shared just as much fault as Rumple did as far as she was concerned.

"Rumple may be to blame for the situation we're in but…so is Emma! She was seduced by the Darkness just like he was so how does that make Rumple any different?!" she demanded. If they were going to try and save Emma from it then they had to try and help him. And maybe Rumple could help them do it in return. How did this not make sense?!

"Sorry, love," Killian apologized. "Crocodile's had more chances than anyone."

"And right now we need to give Emma her best chance, which means contacting Merlin," David added.

"And something happens to Rumple..?"

"It's a risk we'll have to take," Regina whispered sadly looking her over with something like guilt. But she couldn't believe them. Yesterday they'd been willing to go exploring to figure out if Emma was hiding him, but today when suddenly they couldn't see what was in it for them they weren't?! No one said that Merlin was the best chance for Emma! They'd just decided! Oh, she and Hook and even her majesty were about to have problems again…pity really, they'd been doing so well.

"Well…maybe you're willing to…I'm not!" she spat at her and at Killian for that matter. They couldn't keep saying they were her friends and then not help her. And Mary Margaret and David…well this was exactly why she hadn't listened to Archie and called them when he'd gone missing. She was on her own. And she'd figure it out on her own if that's what it took.

* * *

 **Alright, we've finally made it to 5x06, now get comfy because we are going to be here for a little while. I hope this chapter flows alright, beginning middle and end, knowing full well that there is very little I can do about the middle and end part. I found that this scene was difficult to get into, conversation wise, there was so much to catch up on again and then it was also very sudden. But as far as the ending goes, I'm hoping some of the previous chapters help with the build up so that it all feels like one cohesive story, in other words, everything that season 5 was not for Rumbelle.**

 **Thank you so much, Fox24, Rumbellefan, Carlyle23, Grace5231973, Teresa Martin, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Matty, and Ladybugsmomma, for the comments you left me on the last chapter! It was all much appreciated, and I'm so happy that you got a laugh out of the Rumbelle comment. I was worried that would go over poorly. I'm glad it got a giggle out of you! On to the next, Peace and Happy Reading!**


	28. Nothing But Luck

She was on her own that much was clear. And only one thing really came to mind. She had to get that cubby open. She just had to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt what Emma had taken besides the teacup! Her new plan? Get around the magical block. Emma had taken the teacup, but there had been a dozen things in that little cubby, and each one presented her with a loophole, a variation on the locator potion. Rumple was guarded, would anything that Emma had taken with her also have been guarded? The tea cup for example. If she could find something that belonged to it, the fragmented chip for example, was it possible she could alter the locator potion, not to find it's owner, but the item it belonged to? It was worth a shot. Rumple had kept books inside of the cubby, books that even she knew were important to Dark Magic, for all she knew Regina was wrong and Emma had taken the tea cup to keep her out of the cubby and discovering what was gone.

"I've had worse theories," she muttered to herself as she pulled out books and his black bag. The tricky thing was that to get around Emma's magic, she had to first get around Rumple's. But she didn't think it would be all that difficult. After all, with the golden thread, she would be working with his magic, and she had another idea, a variation on a glamor spell she'd read about, only the glamor wouldn't be on a person, it would be on a teacup.

She set to work immediately, got the potion brewing in the back room and when she was ready traveled to the front of the store all the while thinking through the next step in her mind. If Emma had taken a book, all she needed was a piece of paper, if she'd torn pages out of a book then she needed the book. If she'd taken his cane, all she needed was a splinter. Neal's blanket? A single thread would do. Lint would do!

She reached into a particular glass case and pulled out a small white teacup, similar to theirs, but with obvious differences. It was perfect of course, had never been dropped or suffered his wrath, or been a victim of a clumsy moment…

But she could take care of that.

She'd have to.

In the back room, she picked up a small toy hammer and discovered that it was more difficult to chip something on purpose than it was on accident. Instinct was to treat it delicately so that the entire thing didn't shatter and so each time the hammer rebounded off the porcelain without even cracking it. So finally she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, exhaled, and tapped the hammer against the lid once, then twice, then a third, and fourth, and-

Finally, something gave way, and when she opened her eyes, she was that she'd managed to successfully put a rather large chip on the lip. And she'd never been prouder. But with no time to waste she quickly took the cup to the cauldron, she used a needled to prick her fingers several times and smear her blood all over it. It was disgusting business, there was no doubt about that, but this was the part she hoped would work. She hoped that part of what made the key so special was that the lock recognized it as a meaningful object. This teacup was not meaningful, but with a bit-a lot-of her blood she hoped that she'd be able to trick the lock just long enough for her to get the cubby open.

When the cup was chipped and coated, the potion brewing, and a piece of his golden thread was tied around the handle, she dipped it into the potion with a pair of antique tongs that melted so terribly she knew that they'd never sell them. Ideally, the cup should sit in the potion for an hour, she'd hoped that she'd be able to retain the patience for it, but after only twenty minutes she was antsy. At twenty-five minutes she was glancing at the clock every thirty seconds. And after thirty minutes she'd decided that it was either going to work, or it wasn't and pulled the cup out of the potion with the deformed tongs. She cleaned as the teacup dried and cooled in the air since she couldn't risk getting any essence from a towel or rag on it and then with a deep breath and a prayer of hopefulness she opened the cabinet and set the teacup over the appropriate saucer.

The plate let off a spark. A gold flash shot forward toward her, then another and another. It wasn't the clear and beautiful sparkling waterfall that it had been before, with her cup, it was more chaotic and spontaneous, but it did its job. When the sparks touched the floor the trap door appeared, and she quickly knelt down, yanked it up, reached in and pulled everything out without bothering to think about what she was actually pulling. She could do that later when she was certain that the cup wasn't going to-

There was a loud pop from above, and she gasped as she covered her head and stayed down at the flying debris. When she looked up the teacup was gone, scattered in a million tiny pieces across the room, the saucer was smoking, and the trapdoor was nothing but solid floor. Well, …she'd always known it was a long shot, at least it had done what she wanted, and-

She felt breathless as she looked the objects over. Cane, blanket, books…as far as she knew, it was all still there. She paged through the books just to be safe but just as she suspected there was no evidence that any pages had been ripped out or tampered with. Her heart sank. Now what? She didn't know why but of course she knew this meant that Emma had taken only the teacup. Probably Regina was right; probably she was using it to goad him on to do…whatever it was she wanted him for. Which she wouldn't know until she found him and could talk to him! And from where she sat on the floor of the pawn shop right now…it was looking pretty hopeless.

This had truly been her only good idea; she could try to overwhelm the protection spell but against the Dark One that was next to impossible. She could put on her boots and just start going door to door and through the forests, she could call the Merry Men and Robin and maybe manage to get another search party together…but what if where he was staying was also cloaked? That would require magic. Too much magic for her to manufacture. She sighed as she picked up Neal's baby blanket and his cane. She might have walked passed him in the woods the other day adn she'd never have known it.

There had to be a way around those spells. Something other than just sheer luck! She needed ideas, new ideas. And when in doubt…

"Library," she muttered as she stood up. Most of the items she'd taken from the cubby she simply put back into his black bag since she certainly didn't want them out in the shop for anyone to see should she be robbed again. The only thing she placed anywhere different was his cane, which she placed in the umbrella stand with the others, silently promising herself she'd move it when she came back. The idea of selling it was just…it wasn't for sale.

Across the street Flynn and Rapunzel were pulling on light jackets when she burst in.

"Belle?!" Rapunzel gasped as she tore inside. "Is everything alright? Do you need something?"

Did she need something…she felt like she needed everything but Rapunzel and Flynn?

"No, I uh…I should be fine on my own. There was a time I worked here every day, and you'll be back after lunch right?"

"Dinner," Rapunzel inserted quickly.

"What?"

"Dinner," she corrected again looking her over. "It's dinner time, not lunch a-a-and we're just going now. You could join us if you want and then we can come back and look for whatever it is you're looking for. Food and sleep might do you a bit of good."

Food and sleep. Probably she was right; probably it would do her some good, but it was already dinner time. She'd had no idea that she'd spent the afternoon in her shop fiddling with a spell only for it to all blow up in her face, and then blow up quite literally. No. She'd eat and sleep later. For now, she needed to be here.

"No, you…you go on without me. I'll figure something else out later."

"Are you sure? You don't look-" But she heard the voice of Flynn whispering behind her as she took off for the back room without an answer. Then "Okay…we'll check on you when we get back" and the sound of the door closing as she unlocked the door to her room of magical books.

Ideas. She needed ideas. Good ones! And she started with the books that talked about the blocking spells. For the most part, it was nothing that she hadn't read before. Placed around an individual to keep them from magic and keep magic from them…strength varied according to the sorcerer…difficult to crack even with the weakest of spells…ways around it included killing the person responsible for the spell, searching for an object close to the blocked individual, locating the magical block instead of the individual, and maps…

Maps!

 _"...and in certain circumstances, maps can be a clever tool for locating that which cannot be found. The right spell on a map is capable of pinning down the location of an individual or an object that has been blocked from magic means simply because most spells are meant to ward off spells that travel through earth and air, using a map requires neither type of magic, only…"_

"Spirit," she breathed recalling the most basic of knowledge. Head Magic versus Heart Magic! If she could perform a spell over a map, one to seek out Rumpelstiltskin then she might just find him. Or even…a spell to find treasure…to find the unfound. She'd used that spell before, when Rumple had been with Zelena, she'd used it to find the Time Travel spell! It had worked on paper then, and it could work on a map now she just needed to put it together and find a map that encompassed all of Storybrooke!

That was easy enough to find in her library. She pulled it out in one of the reading rooms and sprawled it out across the front desk. "Now where is she keeping you?" she questioned looking the map over. Storybrooke…it was huge. Bigger than she ever would have thought it was and when she looked at it on a map like this it was hard to conceive of the fact that she owned half of it. But she couldn't let that get in her way now. She needed to find him. She needed to make the spell and get to-

Suddenly there was a noise, a loud banging behind her that sounded vaguely familiar. Her first thought was Rapunzel, that she was back from lunch-dinner but when she turned toward the noise she saw clearly that it could only be one thing. The elevator. That was the sound it made when it was going up. But…she was alone in the library, and she'd sent Rapunzel away with Flynn! And the elevator only went up to the tower or to the mysterious basement she'd been told never to visit. So who…?

Emma.

That was the only thing that came to mind. The only time people ever seemed to be in the tower was for something awful and the only reason she could think they were in the basement was also for a terrible reason. Emma. But…the elevator?

She didn't care. She'd fight first and ask questions later. For a moment, when she realized that she had nothing to fight with against magic, she thought about hiding, but then she dismissed it. Hiding somewhere close by, so she could see the intruder might not be safe and hiding somewhere she couldn't see them helped no one.

By the elevator, she found a fire extinguisher. Not exactly her first choice but it was heavy enough. Maybe, if she caught the assailant by surprise…struck first then she might be able to-

The gears and chains on the doors ground together, rotating and spinning. She hefted her extinguisher up as far as she could, prepared for the worst. The doors opened and she-

"Don't hurt me, don't hurt me please!" a familiar voice begged desperately.

She gasped. She felt her eyes go wide as she stared at the little man crouched down on the floor of the elevator.

Rumpelstiltskin.

* * *

 **Sorry, but I wasn't just going to let Belle randomly decide to go to the library and open a map up like she was expecting to find a "Dark One's Hiding Spot Here" notation. I wanted there to be a reason for her trip because otherwise, it seemed very out of character to me. Also, we all know that I pretty much always jump at any reason to let Belle use magic, and I needed a way to spend the day. I mean, I'm assuming that Regina would call everyone over to her office first thing in the morning to share what she found the night of the party, and not sleep in, have brunch with Robin, pay a few bills, handle dry cleaning, and then say "well, may as well tell everyone the big news" mid-afternoon. So if we follow that logic, that she called everyone first thing in the morning (or texted, as Moments suggests) then the entire day passed by in a matter of a couple of minutes because let's face it the time between this scene and when they are heading out in the car, and the sun has gone down is about five minutes max. So, the magic was an excuse to spend the day.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, NejiHina100, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Fox24, Teresa Martin, Matty, Rumbellefan, Carlyle23, and Ladybugsmomma, for your reviews on the last chapter. I'm so happy that everyone seems to be excited to get to this halfway point (though the "half way" chapter is actually next) in the season. And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, the moment you've been waiting for all summer...Rumbelle reunion time! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	29. The Unending Pull of True Love

"Please," Rumpelstiltskin whimpered as he cowered in the elevator just as she'd once seen him cower at freedom in Zelena's idea of a jail cell. Well, perhaps it wasn't identical, but it was close enough to make her stare opened mouthed at him. Then he'd retreated from the light, from freedom, and from her. Now he averted his eyes and retreated only from her. She could see that if she hadn't been standing there, he probably would have made a run for the door. And no wonder, she'd been ready to strike, the fire extinguisher hiding her face.

"Oh! Hey, hey," she gasped setting the extinguisher aside and showing empty hands. "It's okay! It's-it's just me!"

He was so frightened, so small. As much as she wanted to she couldn't just rush over to him and pull him out herself. She had no idea where he'd been or what he'd been through, he'd been traumatized as it was after Zelena, even if he refused to confess that was what kept him up at night she knew that was the problem! What would it have been like to be powerless and trapped again but by none other than the Dark One?!

But he changed at her words. He finally peeked up at her from where he was on the elevator floor and his face softened in wonder and amazement before it began to wrinkle again in a look that she recognized. Tears. He was crying.

"It's okay," she breathed again.

"Belle," he whispered looking her over.

"I-it's just me," she assured him, suddenly very happy she'd sent Rapunzel away for the evening. She didn't need to see this, no one needed to see him like this.

Rumpelstiltskin moved. He let go of what he'd been clutching, a big stick or branch of some kind and reached for the doors. She could see what he'd fashioned for himself as he struggled to move and stand up properly. A cane. Without magic his leg was crippled again. It was just one more thing to add to the shock of it all.

"Is it really you?" he cried struggling under his own weight but looking at her as though she might be an angel or possibly a devil. It wasn't terribly surprising to her; people had been using her against him long before Emma had been the Dark One. What had happened to him now?

"Yeah," she assured him. But instead of relief or even happiness on his face at the pronouncement he averted his eyes.

"She's after me," he muttered doing his best to step forward. He nearly fell.

"W-wait!" she urged stepping to grab a chair, remembering that he couldn't walk as he once had, but before she could get one he grabbed the closest one by the elevator and pulled it forward before collapsing into it.

"It's okay," she urged remembering his words. The "she" was easy enough to guess. "You're safe now," she assured him. She didn't know how but she'd protect him. She'd make sure Emma didn't get to him again, that no one got to him and took him from her ever again. "It's okay. It's okay!" she breathed just as much to herself as to him as she grabbed her own chair and sat down opposite him to look him over. He didn't seem hurt. She couldn't see bruises of any kind, not on his face at least. The rest of him…she couldn't tear her eyes off of his. And yet she couldn't seem to get her legs to pull herself any closer than she was, a solid six inches from his knees. To think there was a time when she would have been joyful just to let them brush together!

"Oh Belle," he sighed. "Thank you."

Suddenly she worried as she looked him over. Was he hallucinating? She hadn't done anything. At least nothing significant. As far as she was concerned all she'd done so far was stare at him and tell him it was "okay", and she was pretty sure it wasn't okay! Still, he'd freed himself. "Thank you" seemed inappropriate and confusing. She didn't understand...

"What?"

"No, I…I meant when I was in the coma," he added. "All I wanted to do was let go. After all I'd done why did I deserve to live? And then I heard something…your voice." She opened her mouth to say something but had to close it again because she didn't have the words at his proclamation. So he had heard her. Here, certainly, but maybe even there, in Camelot. She could remember saying something to him from there, in Granny's diner before their memories stopped, she could remember begging him quietly to hold on for her and hoping the message got through. Had it? Was it possible that the rose was what she thought it was? Not just a link to him for her, but a link to her for him as well. And she just didn't know what to say to him knowing what she'd said, knowing what had passed between them before all that.

"After all the things I'd done to you…you still stood by me! Belle, if it wasn't for you…I wouldn't even be alive!" He reached for her hands and choked out a "Thank you!" through tears that made her heart feel like they were caught in a vise. Tears had always been the most difficult thing for either of them to resist. They could be so angry they were ready to throw fire at one another sometimes…one tear made the world melt away as they held one another. And it was so easy to do that, it would be so easy now to do that, to reach out and hold him until his tears passed, and just take him back and be with him until…until the next deception…

Remembering that she shook herself out of her stupor and pulled her hands from his. No. No, she couldn't do this again. She wasn't ready to yet and they had bigger problems to deal with. Like the person who was after him. "Come on! It uh…it won't take Emma long to figure out where you've gone," she stated quickly rising to her feet and looking around for the sheer purpose of putting distance between the two of them. She'd forgotten just how alluring true love was, how she could be pulled to him even when she was supposed to be angry at him. Was. Even when she _was_ , as in still presently, angry with him.

"If she wanted to find me she would have already. She wanted me to escape," Rumple explained from his place on the chair. She was almost grateful he didn't have his cane. She wasn't ready for him to follow after her so eagerly just yet. But that didn't change the circumstances he'd just spoken of. He was right. If Emma wanted to find him she could find him with only a thought, which meant that she either didn't know he was gone yet, a theory she found doubtful, or he was a right, a theory she couldn't understand.

"Tha-that doesn't make sense, she kidnapped you!" she pointed out. Why kidnap someone and then just let them go when they ran away. Much less Rumple who couldn't stand or even fight right now to save his life?!

"Yeah, to turn me into a hero," Rumple sneered. "So I could pull Excalibur from the stone." She needed a hero to pull Excalibur from the stone. That was new information. But if pulling Excalibur from the stone was Emma's goal so she could destroy Light Magic then…why let him go? She assumed he hadn't done his task if he'd had to escape and since the world wasn't dripping with blackness she assumed that Emma hadn't won yet.

"Well, how does letting you escape accomplish that?"

Why let Rumple go? Why not come after him? Why take their teacup if she was just going to let him go? None of this made any sense. Apparently it made little sense to him as well as he stayed silent for a moment, his eyes searching the floor and the world around her for something, anything to solve this puzzle!

"She's coming after you," he whispered suddenly. But that didn't make any sense either.

"Me? Why?"

"To force me to protect you!" he shouted. "She thinks that'll make me the hero that she needs," he explained with sad helpless eyes. "Belle, you're in danger," he whispered.

Yes. She didn't understand why Emma needed a hero to pull the sword from the stone but if that was what it took, if Emma believed that forcing him to protect her, an innocent victim, was what would make him a hero then she'd do it. She nodded in agreement. He was right. They were both in danger.

"Okay. So…so what do we do?" she asked.

"The shop," he whispered, pointing his thumb at it through the walls of the library. "There's magic there that can help us."

"Alright s-so…so we need to get to the shop and we need to get there before Emma can find us and come after us and kill us." When she put it that way it seemed almost easy. Smartest way to go would be out the back, shortest way to go would be out the front door and simply cross the street. Looking at Rumple and how he was resting on a chair as if he'd never seen relief before, probably the shortest way was also the smartest way.

She swallowed as she got to her feet and went to the window. She pulled the blinds aside and inspected the streets out front, then went into the back and did the same. So far so good. No sign of anyone with white hair and black clothing, in fact there was hardly any sign of anyone on the street. Everyone must have been at dinner and she honestly couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing for them. Only one way to find out.

She bolted back into the front room and pulled the blinds down again for a final check. "We'll go out the front way, I think it'll be faster for both of us.

"Belle…" he sighed.

She ignored him as she looked up and down the street again. Now was as good a time as any, she certainly couldn't risk Rapunzel and Flynn coming back and involving them in this. "Alright…the coast is clear," she whispered before glancing back at him. "We should go now!"

"N-no, no, no, I'm sor-I-I can't-I can't go, I'm sorry!" he refused quickly making her stop before she could reach him. He couldn't go? This was his plan, everything hinged on getting to magic in his shop and suddenly he couldn't go?!

"But your shop's only a hundred yards away!" she argued. She knew that his leg hurt, she knew it wasn't going to be fun but his cane, the magic, everything they needed was over there and she certainly wasn't going to leave him here all by himself! She could support him, they could make it!

"No, I'm…I'm sorry I can't."

Couldn't. Couldn't wasn't the issue she knew from the look in his eye.

It was wouldn't.

She had few memories of him with that look of terror on his face, but the one that she was certain she had was fresh. The town line. It wasn't that he couldn't make it across the street, he was just too scared to try. But if he really thought that she was just going to run and leave him behind, risk Emma finding him again when her back was turned…no there wasn't a chance of that happening.

"You made it out of the woods and through the mines…this isn't just about you getting back to your shop, is it?" she questioned.

He was quiet for a long while, he glanced up at her in an awkward way because never before had she really towered over him like this. But eventually he looked away, he looked ashamed. "It's my leg," he breathed again. She stayed silent. His leg wasn't the issue. And she wasn't going to just let him let this go. If it took silence to goad him on then that's what she'd do. The Dark One had often found comfort in silence, she knew Rumple didn't, not when there was something so big between the two of them, not when there was something so important they needed to discuss and she expected him to discuss it.

"It's a reminder of what I was when I fled the ogre wars, what I continued to be when I became the Dark One, and what I still am is a coward," he eventually admitted glancing up at her again. Coward. She really, really hated that word. He wasn't a coward. A coward wouldn't have lasted nearly as long as he had. And if he thought that this was all news to her, that this was a shocking revelation, he couldn't be more wrong! It had been so hard to remember over the last few months, but now she did recall how sometimes she saw him far clearer than he saw himself.

"You've told me why you have that limp before! Because you walked for days on a broken foot just so you could return to your son!" she pointed out.

"Do you know how the foot was broken in the first place? Because-"

"Because you broke it!" she smiled before leaning down next to him so he wouldn't have to look up at her anymore. Had he really forgotten how much he'd told her? Had she? "So that Baelfire wouldn't grow up without a father, Rumple…you may have made many mistakes in your life but this isn't one of them." That was only an act of cowardice from a military point of view. From her view, after the death she'd seen Ogre's inflict, leaving for Baelfire and suffering the consequences was honorable!

Still she could see that he didn't believe her. How could he not believe her, she'd always been honest with him and these few times…she knew he'd been honest with her. It was hard to admit. Her head didn't want her to admit it, to open herself up to something like that again. But her heart urged her forward, prodded at her until she knelt down next to him and held his hands in her own.

"I have always seen the man behind the beast, alright, but now…" she wasn't sure how she managed to say it. That was the truth, it was what made everything at the town line so horrible and painful. She'd seen the man, she'd watched him let the beast consume what had been left of the man she loved, and that to her was one of the worst, unspeakable acts he could commit, that had been cowardice! But now the beast was gone and the man remained and what she saw in that man…he was wonderful. Just as handsome and dashing as she'd always known. And heroic! He cared for her far more than he did for himself. And he was smart and brave…she didn't know how but he'd escaped the Dark One on a bad ankle with nothing but a stick and his intelligence and made his way back to her. That was what mattered to her, not magic and lies, but strength and will!

If he could do all that, then she knew that he could make it across the street and help her, he could protect them both! He just had to believe it. "Now I see something else too. A hero. And you…you just need to learn to see him too!"

* * *

 **Yay! Rumbelle reunion! I always looked forward to writing this episode. You know, I think that is what is making the writing of 5B so difficult right now. In nearly every season I've always had that one special scene of motivation, in season 2 it was Belle remembering who she was, in 3A it 3x10, in 3B it was the wedding, 4A was fun to write because there was a lot of good with the bad, but starting in 4B things got complicated. The little scene we got at the end was motivation, but not nearly enough of it. Camelot had next to nothing. And the rest of 5A...5x06 was pretty much it. That motivation doesn't really exist for 5B. I hope beyond hope that season 6 will give us some kind of motivation to go on. And when I say motivation I mean more than one scene, more than one episode. More than two episodes even! Hell, at this point if we get three happy, no deception, working together, healing episodes, I'll be happy! Wouldn't you?**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Carlyle23, Teresa Martin, Fox24, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Ladybugsmomma, and my unnamed guest, for all the reviews you left me on the previous chapter! They were lovely. I hope that this scene will live up to your expectations. It's not difficult to, we all liked 5x06, so I know that the real test comes afterwards, filling the in-betweens in! I'll do my best! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	30. A Three and a Half Legged Race to Death

"Please Rumple, I know you can do this. For me. You can do this for me," she stated firmly applying pressure to his hands.

He looked her in the eyes for a long time, and she swore that his breath must have been caught in his throat because he didn't seem to move even for that. She knew he was afraid. She was afraid too, but the great thing about being afraid together was that they didn't have to be alone. That was what she'd always wanted not just for her but for both of them. She'd wanted him to share her burden and wanted to take his own when it got to be too much. That was what marriage was!

The knot she had in her stomach began to release the moment his hands softened in hers, and he nodded his head, with a grimace of course, but it was a nod nonetheless. "Check the windows again," he urged.

Before he could lose is courage she rose and checked the front one again as noises behind her told her he was doing his best to stand on his own two feet. She knew he couldn't. "Still clear," she assured him before moving back to his side, placing his arm over her shoulder, and reaching around to put her arm against his back. He attempted a step, but it was half a step, one that he still attempted on his own that put as little weight on her as possible and the result was that he pitched forward again, and she had to yell "whoa! Whoa!" as he struggled to get underneath him again. It was going to be like a three and a half legged race.

"I'm sorry," he apologized quickly.

"It's okay. It's okay!"

"I don't want to crush you!"

"You…" she held her breath as memories of the past assaulted her. She'd heard that phrase before, not in that particular tone, but this was an old conversation, a battle they'd frequently had when they'd been together in bed, and he'd lost so much of his energy he just let himself collapse against her. _"I'm sorry, I don't want to crush you,"_ he'd apologize. She knew the response, the one she'd given nearly every single time _"It's not a problem, I like holding you."_

Those words nearly made her mouth go dry as she heard them in her head. Not because she was ashamed that she'd ever said them, but because they were true, then and maybe even now. She always had enjoyed the feel of the two of them together. They were like two matching puzzle pieces, each one designed exactly for the other, even holding him against her side like this it felt far more right than anyone, including Will, ever had. And it scared her. Truly it was the most terrifying thing in the world to be a slave to this true love to know that either she loved him or she loved no one at all because no one would ever be able to satisfy compared to him. She was scared not because she'd been ashamed she'd ever said words like that to him, but because she'd been about to say them again now. And it was still far too soon for proclamations like that.

"You won't hurt me," she urged. "We just have to work together, get across the street, and I can get you your cane back."

He shook his head. "No. No, we can't it's locked in the-"

"Cubby under the floor? I found it, Rumple, I can get you to it. You just have to trust me. Do you trust me? Do you trust we can do this?" she questioned holding him up so that he wouldn't give up and fall back into the chair again.

The knob in his throat bobbed as he swallowed and looked away from her again. Distance. Distance partially created by Emma, by the Apprentice, by any number of people, but a lot of distance she'd made herself when she cast him over the line. She had a lot of emotions, a lot of thoughts and regrets about that night now that she was here. Part of her wished she'd never done it, a part of her still believed she'd had no choice, but all of her believed that the way to recover from distance wasn't to look back on it but to take steps forward to close it any way possible. Trust was a good place to begin.

"Do you trust me?" she asked again, catching the worry in her tone when she'd meant to sound confident. Frankly, she was scared of how he'd respond.

But he finally took another swallow, looked her dead in the eye and nodded. "I do," he answered, breathless from the effort it took to hold himself up.

She felt her fear uncoil in her belly. Trust was a start. "Then believe me when I say we can do this. Alright?" He nodded again. "Alright. Then let's go."

It wasn't easy. The walk to the door was odd, and they were off step nearly the entire way. But it was good for them. It provided practice and by the time they got to the door she felt they were ready to take on the hundred foot distance to his shop. "Alright. One, two, three, go!" she called forcing the door open. The two of them made their half walk, half jog across the street. All the while she looked out for a woman in black but saw no one of importance. Before she knew it the sidewalk was once more beneath their feet, the shop door was in front of them, and she was happy that she had forgotten to lock the door on her way out because she wasn't sure she really wanted to fiddle with the keys right now.

They were breathless when they entered the shop, breathless and terrified as she closed the door behind her and glanced out the window to make sure no one had spotted them. But she was also proud in a way she'd never been before. It was a silly physical thing. The kind of thing she imagined Archie might have made them do if they'd thought about marital counseling, but they'd done it. And that was a feat she didn't know they were capable of until now. It was a good thing. And as she looked out onto the street and saw no one standing there, she knew they were safe. So far so good, but they had to move onto the next task. They had to get their magic and leave because staying here was no better than hiding in the library. But first…she owed someone a prize.

"See, I knew you could make it!" she breathed as Rumple hobbled away from her and reached for tables to help support his weight.

"I should know better than to argue with you by now," he responded nearly tripping over himself.

If they weren't in this situation, she would have been perfectly happy that he'd noticed that. As it was they were in this situation, and one thing was for sure, they wouldn't get very far if he had to lean on her for the rest of the time. As wonderful and terrifying as it had been to touch him like that, he was heavy against her small frame, and they couldn't run around like this as long as Emma was on the loose. Suddenly she was very glad that she'd figured out a way to break into the cubby and retrieved his things. His cane was nearby.

"Here…" she deposited him with a hand along the counter so she could quickly run around the register and to the stand where she'd set it. "Here!" she breathed again handing him his cane with a small smile. This wasn't a time to be sentimental. They were here for a reason; because there was magic here. What magic did he need and how could it help? "Now, what did we come here for?" He took the cane from her and fit it right back in his hand where it belonged before-

Suddenly there was a crash, glass shattering. There were hands on her shoulders shoving her down and to the side as something went by her ear and made a thud on the wall just behind her. She glanced over her shoulder at it.

An arrow.

Just like she'd seen last night when the shop was broken into. But…where…

She glanced back over Rumple's shoulder as the bell on the door chimed, and he helped her straighten her back again. A woman entered. She had wild red hair that looked as though it had never seen a brush, a blueish green dress that was better suited for the likes of Camelot than Storybrooke, and in her hand was a bow, while slung around her waist tied with a leather strap was a quiver of arrows. Arrows that matched the one she'd seen just now. Arrows that matched the one she'd found yesterday.

Her! She'd broken into the store last night! But…but she didn't recognize her! Why on earth would she want to break in? Why would she steal their cup? Why was she trying to kill them now? She didn't even know them!

"I told the Dark One you wouldn't be daft enough to take shelter in yer own shop. But _she_ said that you wouldn't be able to resist the pull of yer magic!" the woman yelled as she advanced on them with wide intent eyes. The Dark One said…this girl was working for Emma. And…she knew Rumple? Was this who he'd been with, where he'd been, all this time?! With her?!

"Merida you don't have to do this," Rumple urged gently next to her.

"No I tried to fight it but I couldn't," she cried back. "So now her fate rests in your hands!"

This time, when she screamed, she put the bow in her other hand and drew an arrow. This was getting nowhere with her, and she was armed! She needed to get them to somewhere safe.

She grabbed Rumpelstiltskin, who was looking back at the woman almost sadly. He didn't move fast enough, even with his cane. She heard the bowstring stretch as the girl pulled and she nearly had to grab and shove him into the back just in time to close the doors that she'd never actually closed in her life and press her body weight against them.

She took a breath. They were safe for now. Her in one room them in the other. Now they just need to-

There was a loud and violent thud against the door, and she jumped at the motion next to her. When she glanced over, she saw that an arrow had pierced right through the wood. Maybe they weren't as safe as she foolishly thought they were.

* * *

 **Yeah, sorry, this chapter and the next are I believe the last of the awkward divisions. There was a lot going on, and I didn't want to put it all into one chapter, so I divided and, hopefully, conquered! Maybe?**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, RumpleBumple, Fox24, Matty, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Teresa Martin, Rumbellefan, Ladybugsmomma, and Carlyle23, I really enjoyed your reviews of the last chapter! I loved hearing what everyone was hoping for this season, those special things that would make each one of us happy. Here's hoping that it's pulled off! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	31. Outsmarting the Hunter

They were trapped.

In the back of the shop, they both threw their body weight against the flimsy door and did what they could to hold off the red headed girl who was currently trying to break down the door. The last shock threatened to knock the wind right out of her. Her heart was pounding, and she couldn't breathe, and she had no idea who this was or why this was happening or why she was working for Emma!

"Belle a door isn't going to stop her?!" Rumple muttered just as breathless beside her.

"Who is she?" she managed to question.

"I'm afraid that's too long of a story for now," he choked out before another bang made her head smack against the door painfully. On the other side of Rumple, she saw one of the doors hinges rattle with the pressure. He was right. Now wasn't the time for long stories, it was time to figure out what to do so they could get themselves out of this situation.

She gasped as another thud of energy hit directly at her lower back.

They needed to get themselves far away from this situation.

"Belle…you have to leave," Rumpelstiltskin breathed during a moment of calm. It wouldn't last. Outside the girl was calling out for him, telling them that it was useless to fight her that she couldn't stop. She heard the floorboards creak as she wound herself up again.

No, they couldn't leave, she couldn't leave. Not without Rumple. She could see the door right in front of them, but she knew that it was locked, and Rumple needed her body weight to keep the door closed. By the time she dug the keys out of her pocket and got the door unlocked it would be too late. Besides, even if they did get out Rumple was limping. Even though he had his cane, he'd never be able to actually run from the girl, and that left both of them out on the streets of Storybrooke with no physical or magical cover against a girl with a quiver of arrows. They'd last all of two yards at best.

No, their best chance was here. Somehow…

She glanced around the shop, hoping for some kind of magical answer as the girl backed away once more and she adjusted her body weight to prepare for yet another assault on the door.

"Belle go!" Rumple urged.

No! She wasn't going to leave him and obviously this girl wasn't going to go away. She was precocious and insistent…so maybe they'd use it against her.

She had the keys in her pocket, and she had magic hidden all over this shop from when she'd been afraid the Queens of Darkness would come for her! Of course, there was nothing terribly good in this back room because she'd always assumed that if they came it would be in front of the shop and she'd have time to run out the back. That would be easiest now, but she wasn't alone anymore, and she had Rumple to think about. So…

They'd hide, they'd wait until the next time that she reared back to hit the door, move and hide, and when she stormed in with all her energy and her momentum carried her across the room she'd throw a potion, something distracting that would spark or hiss or create a blinding light, and then they'd lock her in here.

Yes. That would work. Not for long, only as long as it took her to figure out how to work the lock on the back door, but at least it would get them outside to the car and away from here. The girl was fast, but so far she hadn't used magic, and that meant that against a car she'd lose. It wasn't much, but it was something.

She took a deep breath, felt the pounding against the door that she'd just started again. She was losing momentum. One hit, then two, then three. Now!

She grabbed Rumple just after the last strike. She didn't think, just hoped. Hoped that she was right, hoped that this would work, that fate would smile down on them. She forced him down around the corner and onto his knees as the pounding stopped predictably. "Run when I tell you to run," she whispered as she looked around for the place she'd hidden the little glass vials.

Her blood ran cold.

She had hidden a few over here, hadn't she?!

"Belle-"

"I'm not leaving you here!" she hissed. "Either we both go or neither-"

Suddenly the door crashed open, and she held her breath waiting for the image of the girl to fly across the room and give them a clear shot to the door.

She felt herself freeze as her eyes widened. She'd failed. Precocious and insistent as she was, she didn't fly across the room as she'd expected. The girl assumed the role of a hunter the moment the door banged open, and she heard carefully trained footsteps walk across the old floor with quiet precision. She couldn't actually see her from where they were hiding, not originally, but then there was a mirror in front of them perfectly trained on her and it was worrisome. If she could see her through the mirror then that meant that she could see them. Maybe they were lucky. Maybe she wasn't as skilled as she thought she was. Still…where were those potions?!

Rumple's grip on her hands tightened and she looked into the mirror. Her heart leapt as she met the redhead's gaze. She watched as the girl pulled on the bowstring and let the arrow loose. She jumped when it collided with the mirror and shattered the thing into hundreds of tiny pieces. Rumple had reached up to cover her face and eyes at the crashing glass and she glanced around her.

Potions! Now! She needed them! Where were they?!

But as Merida rounded the corner she knew it was too late. She couldn't find the potions, her bow already prepared to shoot, one motion and she'd strike certainly! And his black bag…she could see it so clearly from here! How ironic? Everything this needed was within sight but out of reach. What now?

The girl. She could see the fear and sadness in her eyes as she trained the arrow on her and glanced over to Rumple. "Stop me, ya coward! Be the hero we all need!"

It wasn't just an order, she was pleading with him. She was working for Emma but…but she really didn't want to do this. What was happening here? And-

"I…I can't! I'm-I'm sorry Belle," he breathed putting a hand on her back as she sat there and cringed. It wasn't a matter of not being able to, if he had magic or if his leg wasn't bad he might stand a chance, but not like this. What did Emma expect Rumple to do? Emma wanted him alive to pull the sword how was this supposed to make him a better man? A hero? He was lame, he couldn't get her arrow away but…maybe he didn't need to.

"No, I am, for wha' I'm about to do!" the girl insisted but Belle wasn't paying attention to her anymore. She was paying attention to her feet.

The girl was looking at them, her prey…she'd taken in her surroundings but not what was right under her. Maybe they didn't need magic, just a little bit of muscle.

A duck ensured if she let the arrow loose she'd miss her. She took a deep breath and reached forward while her attention was still on Rumpelstiltskin, then she grabbed the corner of the carpet that the woman was standing on and yanked as hard as she possibly could, using strength she never knew her small body was even capable of.

There was a gasp. Then a thud, then two. And when she looked over at the stranger she realized that it had worked. She'd done a summersault off the carpet and fallen onto the ground. She couldn't see her eyes, but she saw almost no movement from her. Now, they had to run, there was no time to figure out if she was alright or not they had to get out of here. She crawled out of the cubby and Rumple remained behind her. She reached down and offered him a hand as she urged him to get up. They had to go! He followed and as soon as he was on his feet, bearings or not he moved around her and out the door. The girl groaned and she looked back in fear for a moment before kicking the bow out of her hands for good measure and rushing after Rumple into the front room.

"Okay, come on," she urged as he went right to the safe. "She's not going to stay passed out for long!" Frankly, she wasn't even sure that she was passed out. That hadn't been a very hard hit. For all she knew she'd just lost consciousness for a few moments and was having a hard time getting back up again. They needed to go!

She watched as Rumple opened the safe and pulled out a small pouch near the forefront of it. Had that been in there the entire time?

"What's that?" she asked as he took it out and opened the drawstring up. It looked like powder of some kind.

"We might not outrun her arrows, but there's somewhere where _this_ can keep us safe!" He quickly closed the bag again, pocketed the powder, and when she glanced back up at him he met her eyes for a moment then took her hand and they made their way toward the door.

* * *

 **Odd chapter. It's short, but I know it feels long, like I dragged this scene out longer, at least I like to think it is. Again, it's supposed to be that way. I like to do it in these scenes where stress is high. Also, I know it seems like I added stuff and possibly went outside of canon for this chapter, but it's not true! Let me assure you, I just used what canon left open. There is a commercial break between the time that Belle and Rumple go into the back and Merida starts breaking down the door, there is also a couple of shots that feature Merida beating on the door when the other side is not shown and anything could have happened or been said, not to mention because of the break it could be said that the timespan is not clear. I added stuff in those spots. So technically canon is still preserved and tradition upheld! Ta-da!**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Carlyle23, Curly J, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma, for your reviews on the last chapter. Oh yay! I'm so happy that so far everyone is enjoying these chapters! I'd love to say that I stressed over them endlessly but lets face it, compared to 5x10, 5x06 was cake. My only concern was living up to how awesome the show was! I'm happy everyone is enjoying it! Thanks for reading! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	32. Fighting the Easiest Way Out

"Where's the car?" Rumple asked when they got out into the damp, chilly air. The sun was going down, wherever they were going, whatever they were doing, they needed to do it soon!

"Around the corner, where we always park it," she commented fishing the keys out of her pocket and handing them to him. He knew where they were going, she didn't. Together they walked down the street and then piled into the car.

"Who was that?" she asked as he pulled out into the street.

"That…was a young queen named Merida," he answered.

"She…she's a-a queen!" she sputtered.

Rumpelstiltskin nodded. "When I woke up Emma wanted me to remove Excalibur from the stone. But first, she needed the heart of a hero, not the heart of a coward. She said I was a blank slate. I was the Dark One for so long that when you cleared the blackness out of my heart, it must have wiped away everything else, that's the only way to possess a heart that is neither black nor red."

"You're right," she confirmed as they drove. "You're heart…the Apprentice removed it from your chest, and it was so, so black Rumple. He used the hat to take away the blackness and when he put it back in your chest…Rumple, your heart was white."

He nodded. "After all that time the good I'd done was washed away by blackness. Without the blackness…there was nothing left."

"But…but then why the girl-Merida? Why is she after you? Why is she working with Emma and not with everyone else from Camelot?" she questioned. Was she even from Camelot?! Arthur was the King, and his Queen was Guinevere. Who was this woman?

"She's not. Emma has her heart," he informed her. Well, that certainly would explain why she was following through with orders unhappily. She had no control over what she was doing. "Only a hero can pull Excalibur from the stone and since I am the worst example of a hero and the girl is brave beyond measure Emma forced Merida to take me to the woods and make me a hero as if it's something that can be taught."

The ; she. That was where he'd been yesterday. Camped out in the woods with Merida and cloaked with magic. And obviously held prisoner as she knew one particular moment he would have been left alone.

"She broke into the shop yesterday," she told him. "I wasn't sure who it was until just now, though I figured it had something to do with Emma. All she took was-"

"Your chipped cup, I'm well aware," he responded quickly. She looked over at him with wide eyes.

"Regina was right…she did use it against you…"

"She did but…I'm sorry Belle…it's gone."

It was the oddest sensation she'd ever felt. She knew her teacup wasn't living. It didn't have life or feelings or anything that remotely resembled humanity…but she felt like he'd just announced to her the death of a dear friend. She felt tears pool in her eyes and she struggled to hold them in as he explained to her that Merida had found the teacup to taunt him, threatened to destroy it if he didn't move the way she wanted him to. He'd done what she said but this afternoon, when Merida had left him alone so she could fetch Emma to see their progress…

"She tied me up. And your cup was made of porcelain, I knew the right piece would cut through anything. I'm sorry, but I wanted to get back to you, I needed to talk to you and I…"

He'd destroyed it. He'd kept it safe from Merida and Emma, from Regina and probably countless others before that moment and then he'd destroyed it himself to escape. "I uh…I understand," she managed to choke out, doing her best to disguise her tears. She did understand, truly she did. In fact, she was even happy that he'd done it! She'd rather have him home safe and sound rather than a lifeless teacup. And really when she thought about it, it was a miracle that thing had survived as long as it had, jumping from realm to realm, changing hands so many times, even enduring his own wrath. It probably should have been broken decades ago. But still, try as she may to tell herself that it was okay, it didn't change the fact that she'd miss it.

"It uh…it's okay," she breathed. "I'd rather have you than some silly chipped cup."

"I'll make it up to you Belle; I promise I will," she watched as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a single white shard barely the size of her palm with the picture of the blue tree branch on it. She nearly cried again at what she was left with, but instead, she pocketed the shard and glanced over at Rumpelstiltskin. He was what she was left with. Not just a shard from a damaged teacup, he was what she had left. And they may be broken and damaged themselves right now, but they had all the pieces they needed to repair themselves after this was over, if they could survive it all that was.

"It's fine," she dismissed again glancing at the powder that sat on the seat between them. "Just uh…what is this stuff exactly? How is it supposed to help us?" she asked picking it up. She opened the drawstring pouch and put her nose into it. It smelled like mint and sunflower and it's texture was like coffee. What on earth was this stuff?

But when she looked over at Rumple she saw his eyes fixed firmly on the dark road ahead of them, her question unanswered.

The dark road.

She glanced around frantically. They'd been talking and she hadn't realized…they were on a long stretch of road, the town was far behind them, and…she knew this road. She knew where they'd end up if they kept driving on this road as fast as they were!

"Wh-where are we going?" she questioned nervously. This wasn't what she thought it was, it couldn't be! If it was then why grab the powder?

"The only place we'll be safe from Emma and our quivered friend," he insisted.

Her heart began to race. "But…" The only place…the only place that was possible was if Emma didn't have magic and the only way she wouldn't have magic…the way she'd cut him off from it months ago. It was ironic really, this road was so familiar because she'd walked it alone before, the night she'd sent him over the town line. "You're taking us out of Storybrooke!" she exclaimed.

He glanced over at her and she wanted more than anything for him to deny it, to promise that wasn't the truth…but it was. She could see it in his eyes. "It's Anti-Transformation Powder," Rumple finally answered explaining what was in the pouch. "It'll keep us safe from any effects of crossing the town line."

The effects of crossing the town line...that was the last thing on her mind at the moment! First and foremost was that he'd barely been awake for thirty-six hours and he was already doing _it_ again! With or without magic he was making decisions for both of them without bothering to consult with her, without giving her a chance to work with him, for them to solve this, to fight it, together! It made her chest burn.

"No! No, we can't leave," she argued. "Not while there are still people we care about in this town!"

"Belle, I used to be the Dark One, I know Emma better than she knows herself, she will keep coming 'til she gets what she wants."

"Well, we'll stop her. Together!" That was the right thing to do! This was all about making him a hero by protecting her then why not protect her! They had enough knowledge to outwit Emma between them. She'd keep him safe and he could keep her safe, this was the way it was supposed to be. He might be exactly what they needed to fight her, to make sure she never got that sword and never doomed their family to a life of Darkness in her overbearing shadow!

"Didn't you see what happened back there?" he argued. "I couldn't even protect you from Merida!"

Merida was an unfair example. She'd caught them off guard in a trap. It was a hunter's physical strength against a victim's magical knowledge! It wasn't a fair fight. Emma would be, she knew it would. He needed to know to. They had to go back.

"Rumple…stop the car!"

"What?"

"Now!" she screamed. She wasn't going to let him do this; she wasn't going to let him take her away from them against her will and she wasn't going to let him get away with it either. But as she waited to feel her body begin to slow she only felt more pressure on her back as they seemed to go faster. He wasn't slowing down. He was speeding up. Preventing her from leaving! If he followed through with this, it would be as good as kidnapping!

Fine. He wasn't the only one who could be a stubborn fool. If he didn't want to stop the car, then she'd just get out any way she'd endured more hurt than the fall would cause before. She unbuckled her seatbelt, reached to the side for the handle, braced herself for an impact, and pulled.

Suddenly she had to brace her feet against the floor as she reached out for the seat. They were feet from the town line and seeing she was about to leave he'd stopped the car faster than she knew it could stop. "Belle!" he shouted.

That tone...the one he took with her that reminded her of a child being scolded for something. She hated that tone; she'd always hated that tone and had hoped she'd heard the last of it! But she wasn't about to let him take them the next few feet and decide her fate again for her! He knew how much she hated it, and he was trying to do it anyway!

She pushed herself out of the car and began the long walk back. "Belle!" he heard her call again. "Belle, what are you doing?" she heard him ask. "Come back in the car."

"No!" she refused.

"Please!"

Her nerves felt alive. Her body tingled. And she felt so energized right now she felt like she could run twenty miles and not get tired. She couldn't believe that she was about to do this again! Leave him at the town line. Did he really think this was a good idea? Did he really think so little of her?! That if he just escorted her across the town line then she'd be protected? This wasn't running, this wasn't him being a hero, it was looking out for himself, his own conscious. He might have been able to leave and think nothing of the family they'd leave behind but how could he think that she could? That she could just leave her father and Henry even Neal behind like this. This wasn't heroic. It was cowardice. And she wouldn't stand for it, not when she knew she could do better, not when she knew he could do better! He didn't need his magic. He could do this! Why didn't he listen?!

"No!" she argued before taking a few steps forward. "You know, running never made anyone a hero, okay?!"

"D-don't you get it?" he asked stepping forward. "I'm not a hero."

He didn't want to be a hero now there was a difference. "Well you've been brave before!" she argued walking closer to him.

"When?! During the First Ogres War? Let me tell you the truth about that day…" The truth? The truth about when he crippled himself to go home to Neal? What more could he tell her? "I didn't cripple myself to get back to my son. I did it because I'm scared."

Fear. Fear was a terrible emotion; it could beat people done, justify injustice and make lies seem like truth. That wasn't the truth. She knew the truth. The truth was what he'd said long ago when he wasn't scared. The truth was plain as day when he went off to Neverland to face his father knowing he might not come back. The truth was in how far he'd gone, how horribly he'd been willing to distort his soul to get back home to Neal! He may have been afraid then, but it wasn't why he'd done what he'd done. She didn't believe it, no matter how much he did right now.

"Rumple-"

"I joined the army to prove I wasn't a coward, but when I seen the wounded comin' back from the front lines…I didn't want to die. I'm a coward Belle. That's never going to change…" This old argument again. No one ever wanted to die! She didn't want to die now! Did he think that she wasn't afraid, that Emma wasn't going to come after her even if she left him here on this road…of course she was! Of course she didn't want to die! But she also knew that sacrifices had to be made to ensure the safety of others in the town. A leg, a life…they could do it together! He just…he just wasn't going to believe the words coming from her mouth, the same way that she refused to believe his. Actions spoke louder than words. She knew what she had to do, and she hoped more than anything that still applied to the man she knew hiding in the recesses of his pure soul. "Come back in the car eh…" he encouraged. "This is the only way I know how to protect you!"

She shook her head and took a step away. It wasn't the only way; it was just the easiest way, the way that gave into fear. And he knew it! Somewhere deep down she knew that he knew it. He just needed to remember.

"Come on!" he urged grabbing her arm.

She pushed his advance away. "Protect yourself you mean," she corrected.

He stared at her with wide eyes. "No…"

"You know I…" but she shook her head. Words were useless in this situation, either he'd do what was right, he'd do the brave thing and realize in the end that he'd done it without thinking about it or he wouldn't. She hoped he would, but either way standing here and arguing with him wasn't going to get him to come out of the protective shell he'd wrapped around himself. If he wanted to protect her and let her protect him in the process, he could damn well come and get her.

* * *

 **Won't lie, difficult chapter to write. I worked really hard to get it to a point that I was comfortable with it. This is the result, beyond that there is not much more to say about this chapter other than to hope that you think it's acceptable and promise that there is some good stuff to come after this chapter!**

 **Thank you, Fox24, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Grace5231973, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma, for your reviews on the last chapter. I do hope that you'll enjoy this chapter and the way that I portrayed it. Sometimes just finding the right logical angle is the hardest part of it all. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	33. Knowledge Isn't Always Power

She couldn't believe that she was here, doing this. She couldn't fathom how she managed to find herself walking along this particular road, alone, at night…again!

Though it did feel different than it had the last time she'd done this, months ago. Then she'd been depressed to the point of feeling completely numb to everything around her. The ground, the cold, the wet, the sky, the stars, the very dagger in her hand; none of it had affected her then because she knew that she'd just committed a sin from which her soul would never return, and everything would be different. She'd been half right, but of course, she hadn't known that until this very moment. Rumpelstiltskin was still in her life, still in the lives of those she'd wanted to keep him from, he wasn't a threat, but her soul still felt scarred from that night.

This night didn't feel like that night.

This moment felt…hopeful was the wrong word, but perhaps optimistic wasn't too far from the truth. If she'd been numbed to everything the last time she'd walked this path then this time around she felt hypersensitive to everything. Every noise, the woods, the road that unfurled beneath her feet, the cool fall air pressing in on her; she felt every last bit of it and welcomed it. She kept her eyes down as she walked and said silent prayers with each step that she'd hear the sound of a car engine behind her, or the familiar three-step made by his feet and the cane, anything that might suggest he'd listened to her and was coming after her.

She wasn't an idiot. She knew that he was frightened and scared, and frankly he had every right to be. She was scared too! She'd never really had to fear a Dark One in her lifetime because the Dark One had always been Rumpelstiltskin. But with this new version of Emma she found herself constantly wondering what would happen if she misstepped and now she knew. She was nothing to Emma. Nothing but a pawn, someone that she was willing to dispatch in order to make sure she got what she wanted out of Rumpelstiltskin. She'd always known that she'd never exactly been good friends with Emma, but she'd always hoped that they were close enough she'd never have to worry about her. And now…of course she was terrified. Going over the town line would be the easiest thing to do. But she couldn't leave her family. She couldn't risk Merida being forced to do something to her father or to Henry in her absence. She wasn't ready to leave Neal's grave behind yet. She wanted to go on an adventure, but not like this, not out of fear, not knowing Emma was still here, and she might never come back. And she was hoping beyond all logic that Rumpelstiltskin would see that. That he'd come after her and give them a chance to work together.

But she just wasn't sure if it was possible. She'd known Rumple the Dark One; she'd never known him any other way though and part of her wondered if what they had was salvageable this way. He was so afraid. He'd been told so many times that he was a coward that without his magic he obviously believed it. But cowardice and not wanting to die were not mutually exclusive. Her mother was brave, but she knew that she hadn't wanted to die. Samuel was brave and she knew he hadn't wanted to go to war and possibly die! Her past was filled with brave men and women who wanted nothing more than to live! What made them different from Rumple was that they were just able to look past themselves. He could do it too, she knew that he could because she'd seen him do it before, not just in front of others as the Dark One, but during some of his most vulnerable moments with her, when he'd just been himself and confident; when he'd just been Rumpelstiltskin and nothing else. That was real and pure and brave and fearless…it was heroic. He'd done it before. He could do it again. Just not by taking her outside the town line.

Confidence had made him the man that he was before. Yes, that confidence had come from magic, but there were other ways to have confidence. She hoped that he'd-

She jumped a mile high when the color of the pavement beneath her feet changed, and a shadow fell across her path. Her heart, her thoughts, her nerves all seemed to race as she took in the figure standing before her. Long bluish green dress. Wild red hair. A woman armed as a professional soldier and yet still looking innocent and scared before her.

Merida.

"You should have followed yer wee sweethear' over the town line," she muttered blocking her path.

"Okay…he's not my sweetheart…" and hadn't been for far too long but that was irrelevant. There was something in her hands? What…what was she holding? "And I'm not scared of you," she stated proudly. Why hadn't she thought to take her bag with her to the library? Her cell phone, potions, help, it was all in there, and most of this could have been avoided! And what was Merida fiddling with?! It gave her a bad feeling!

"Aye, but you should be because now the Dark One's not taking any chances…she's making me drink this!"

Merida held up a container of clear liquid. A casual observer might think it was water but she knew better. It was a potion of some kind. The question was what kind? Her heart was racing but her brain was working, her thoughts felt cold and thick but it was working.

Clear. Thin. Watery. Stored in a round bottle. That gave her almost nothing to work with as she racked her brain for any potion she could think of that matched that description. But there were at least two dozen she could probably name off the top of her head, color and texture weren't enough!

She opened her mouth to ask her what it was and beg her not to do it, to fight whatever pull that she felt, but Merida gave the smallest of eye rolls and then tossed it back like Lacey tossed back shots at the bar.

When she was done, she stared at her and for a moment nothing appeared to be happening. The world was quiet and she was charged with anticipation because she knew something would happen. Emma was the Dark One she wasn't going to mix a potion wrong. She silently stored away "delayed reaction" in her mind for what the thing was while-

Suddenly Merida gasped and her back arched unnaturally with a crack that turned her stomach and made her want to look away. She took a step back as she did it again and her mind whirled to action once more.

 _Transformation Potion_ , she realized. Merida had been forced to take a Transformation Potion of some kind. But what kind of Transformation Potion? There were hundreds of them and-

As if it was a sick joke she saw Merida slouch forward as leaves and wind blew around her and she was engulfed in a cloud of thick magic that grew and grew and grew. The sound that came from it was a like a roaring. A roaring like it was a…

Her eyes went wide as she realized too late what it was. The Drink of Ursa. Emma had changed Merida into a bear. At least nine feet tall but she didn't stay long enough to figure out her height just turned and bolted into the woods hoping that her small frame would help her against the branches and leafs and obstacles that Merida's new wider girth might not accommodate.

The Drink of Ursa…a lot of good knowing its name had done her!

* * *

 **It's kinda odd what I was trying to prove in this chapter. In Camelot during 5x06 Belle was attractive to Merida because of her knowledge. The show always makes such a big deal about her super power being how smart she is and her ability to think through difficult situations. I think with this chapter the goal was to show that there are some negatives that come with knowledge as the superpower. Lack of action. She's smart, and I'm not going to pretend like I don't think that's really important, but I really wanted the last line to say a lot. In a situation like this, knowing the name of what she was facing didn't do her much good. She needs action, magic that is, to assist the knowledge she has. Otherwise, she's bear chow.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, NejiHina100, Ladybugsmomma, Fox24, Matty, and Teresa Martin, for the reviews that you left on the last chapter. I appreciate all the insights and I can't tell you how happy I am that you all like this fiction and where I've taken the story. Let's hope that continues! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	34. Useless Fragmented Thoughts

She ran as fast as she could, flying through the wild forest around her without any idea where she was, where she'd been, or where she was going. In the dark, everything looked the same. Tree after tree, stick after stick, and turn after turn things only seemed to get her turned around more. She had no concept of where the town line was, where the town was, where Rumple could possibly be at that moment. All she knew were two things; safety was in front of her and death was behind.

So she ran. Over earth and branches and twigs and rocks. The Drink of Ursa…she ran and somehow her mind was still trying to work an escape out in her mind. There had to be a weakness to it. Every spell had a weakness something that could undo it, sometimes even multiple things. But it had been so long since she'd read the tale of The Drink of Ursa and as she pounded through the forest thinking was difficult. And it was even harder when the ground beneath her bolting feet began to tremble. That wasn't her hitting the ground with enough force to shake the earth. That was the bear. Gaining ground.

She breathed and ignored the splitting in her side as she tried to push herself further, harder. Now wasn't the time to be thinking of the Drink of Ursa, now was the time to think about her breathing and about options, to find a place to hide or people to defend her so Merida wouldn't eat her or claw her to death. But running was hard, especially when she didn't often engage in the sport. Her side was splitting, her lungs felt like they were on fire, the world was dark but beginning to look off color and bright as spots appeared in front of her and-

Her stomach gave a lurch as she stumbled over something and missed a step then missed the ground. She waited for the impact to come all at once but it didn't. The world tumbled and spun around her as she fell down what must have been a hill she hadn't noticed. Her back, her chest, her head, her legs, and arms all came in contact with the ground at some point before she finally came to rest at the bottom. Her world was still spinning, she felt like she might throw up, but she couldn't stop, not for anything. As much as her body ached she knew that Merida was on the trail somewhere close by and she had to keep moving forward.

Merry men! The answer echoed in her mind as she pushed herself up to her feet. Merry Men lived in the woods, close to the town line, and she couldn't ever think of a time that she had seen them and they weren't armed with bows or arrows. She didn't want to hurt Merida, but maybe a few arrows would at least slow Merida down long enough for her to figure out a way around this. It was a long shot, finding them in the dark when she barely had any concept of up or down, but it was the only thought that gave her hope as she took off again and-

There was no again.

When she finally got to her feet she found her path barred by the large black bear standing up on its hind legs and roaring down at her. She wouldn't make it two steps. Now what? There was no one and nothing to help her; her safety hinged on what she knew! The Drink of Ursa…what did she know?

It was crafted so a mother could help her son who had been transformed into a bear. The mother retained knowledge of herself when he hadn't…maybe that was the key. Emma had Merida's heart but could it still apply in bear form? If she could reach her before Emma could…

"Merida!" she shouted over the sound of growling and snorting. "Listen to me…don't do this!" she cried looking up at the beast. It growled and roared at her then gave a half-hearted swipe of its claw at her. She didn't want to do this, she knew she didn't, but whether she had a choice and didn't know it or had no choice at all and did that didn't seem to make a difference. She took a step back, and Merida lunged-

Then backed away.

She watched in shock and surprise as the beast took her attention off of her and turned to-

She looked across the forest and saw something moving toward them. Something with three legs?

No. Just two. Two and a cane.

Rumple! He'd come back. He'd come back to face Merida but…

This was worse than her being armed, a far more gruesome fight was in store for him now, at least she could run! At least she could fight however feebly it would be! Rumple…she'd just condemned her own husband to death. "No! She'll kill you!" Unless…unless she could get the attention back to her. Merida was under orders to kill her and not Rumple if she could just… "Rumple, run!" she screamed as loud as she could. If he ran and left her alone with the unwilling Merida she at least stood a chance. He had to-

"No Belle!" he called back. Merida turned and made large strides that echoed through the forest and shook the ground toward him instead of her. "I'm not running this time!"

Not running…there was a difference between running and running away! Between fighting for life and giving it up! She couldn't just let him. "No!" she refused trying to think of something, anything that she could do to help! The Drink of Ursa…it was a transformation spell it had to have a weakness they could exploit!

"Go!" Rumple cried as suddenly the bear reared up to its full height and roared at him. She watched in horror as it raised its giant paw and brought it down hard. The bear's body obscured her view, but the next thing she knew Rumple was flying through the air, knocked backward and tumbling like a rag doll from the powerful slap! Her heart, everything she had inside of her told her to run forward, to help him up, to try and outrun it together. But fear kept her feet glued to the ground and held her in place. Her mind screamed at her to work.

The Drink of Ursa! What did she know about the Drink of Ursa?!

It was made so a mother could help her son who had been cursed to live as a bear. The mother retained knowledge of herself but the boy hadn't. She knew that it had supposedly been made by a god and the magic that gods possessed it was…

It was unstoppable.

It couldn't be overpowered or overruled. Not until the god decided to overrule it themselves. But this…

This was Emma. This wasn't magic from a god it was magic from the Dark One! Emma had done this! There had to be a way around it.

"No!" she heard herself cry as Rumple finally came to a stop on his back and she watched as the creature straddled him, paused, then reared back again. Her heart was pounding so hard. Dark One magic could be overcome by Dark One magic all they needed was magic which was in the shop or her bag, somewhere other than here!

She looked around, trying to identify the plants around her, hoping that somewhere she'd find a magical poppy and could put the bear to sleep or-

Suddenly Merida gave a loud roar, tearing her eyes away from the vegetation. She saw Rumple cringe and writhe on the ground before Merida-

Suddenly his only hand pushed forward, and Merida stepped away. She batted at her face as though there was a bug on it or something had gone up her nose and then barely a second later she saw another cloud of magic cover her body. Before her eyes, the bear screamed and roared and then…

Silence.

The magic contracted. The bear vanished. And when the smoke finally cleared away there on the ground was a woman in a bluish-green dress with wild red hair…going still by the second.

It was over. Just like that? It was just...over?!

But…was it?

Rumpelstiltskin!

* * *

 **Oh, I swear that I am not trying to drag this out. I just like to have each of my chapters have a clear and central focus or point, and I don't like to swing from one extreme to another in one chapter. These last two chapters divided out odd. I wanted the last chapter to focus on knowledge, this chapter to be the bear attack, and the next to be the aftermath. I didn't feel that any of these three could go together. I'm sorry, but I do believe that you will enjoy the chapters coming up. I think they get better from here!**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Carlyle23, Fox24, Ladybugsmomma, and Teresa Martin, for your awesome comments on the last chapter. I can't tell you all how thrilled I am that everyone is enjoying these chapters, short as they may be. I can't wait to hear what you think of the next few chapters. I think there are a lot of good things coming your way and I hope you'll agree! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	35. An Experimental Third Speed

All at once her legs seemed to unfreeze and the night was so quiet it felt eerie. Nights shouldn't be peaceful and silent after...well…she was still working on putting together what had happened exactly. But her shock would have to wait. She did her best to gulp down breath as she ran for the other side of the clearing toward her husband. On her way she stepped around Merida. The girl was either dead or knocked out.

Knocked out.

It was difficult to tell from a distance but from up close she saw the slightest of movements as she drifted in her wonderful state of unconsciousness. After everything that had happened she felt bad for the girl, truly she knew that she hadn't wanted to do what Emma had been forcing her to do and she was almost glad that she was on the ground asleep instead of a bear again, but….

How on earth had he done that? It was hard to tell from where she was standing and then her mind had been going a mile a minute and her thoughts were a blur. It was hard to remember what had really happened. But he'd thrown something, she could remember that. He'd thrown something the size of a large stone but with force like it was light. And there was no way that a stone would have transformed-

Transformed. Dark One magic for Dark One magic.

Suddenly it was all very clear. The size and shape of the object were consistent with a pouch. Rumple had used the transformation powder on Merida.

Rumpelstiltskin!

All at once she remembered that he was still on the ground and when she looked up she saw that he was moving on the other side of the clearing. He was working on standing up and it was the most beautiful sight she'd ever seen because he was alive and still standing meant that he was fine. Perhaps a little shaken but otherwise he didn't appear to have a scratch on him.

"How…how did you know that would transform her back?" she asked as she approached.

Oh yes, he certainly did look shaken. He looked scared, but it was a different type of scared than she'd seen only a minute ago at the town line, a different kind of scared than she'd seen months ago at that same town line. It wasn't fear or even the look someone had when they were shaken after a situation like this. It was shock. It was the look of someone who had just been shaken to their very core, deep down into their soul. And suddenly she knew the answer he was going to give before he could even give it.

"I didn't," he confirmed with a shake of his head.

Predictable as they were the words were a relief. He hadn't known and he'd done it anyway. He'd come after her without a plan, been brave, tried something to preserve his life and her own without running away. He'd weighed the costs knowing that it might not work and came out better on the other side.

She felt a smile spread across her face as tears threatened to overwhelm her. That was the man that she'd always seen. The man who had gone off to Neverland, the man who had chased Lacey away and given her back her memories, the man that had fought tooth and nail to get back to her after Zelena. That was the man that had just disposed of a bear to save her life. How could he not see that he was so much more dashing, so much more heroic this way than he'd ever been in that storybook even with all that glowing armor?

"I knew you had it in you," she muttered as her hands reached out and curled over his lapels. Still he looked unimpressed with it all, unconvinced as he glanced away. "You saved me!" she insisted.

"Actually," he smirked before finally looking up at her again. "I think you saved me."

Tears were inevitable now because she'd always known that they were capable of this, for years she'd known they were capable of saving each other if only they'd let themselves. This was the opportunity that she'd felt she'd waited a lifetime for! And she wasn't disappointed.

She took a step forward and glanced at him. From his eyes to his mouth and her heart pounded in her chest that same way it once had in his castle at the thought of possibly kissing him.

And then the feeling changed again. And she remembered standing alone on a street, walking home after his banishment, and thinking of all the kisses they'd shared through his lies.

She wasn't ready to kiss him. Not yet. Her head screamed at her that she wasn't even ready to be this close to him! But her head finally lost a battle to her heart. He'd done a good thing and the first since…since she couldn't remember! Everything before this was tainted in some way after his deceit. Maybe now, if she let herself, they could start somewhere new and build on truths instead of lies.

She reached out and drew him against her. She fit her head against his shoulder, the spot that it fit so well and always had since she first arrived here, and allowed his arms to close over her. Their bodies were stiff for a few seconds, as if they needed to relearn the art of touching, but then they began to sway, their limbs tightened, and before she really knew it she felt him nuzzle the crook of her neck as he sighed out his anxiety.

And it felt odd, her skin tingled, and she shivered at the touch but she allowed it. They had to relearn the art of touching…they had to relearn a lot of things in the days to come. But if they did it like they'd done this…she had no doubt that they could.

She pulled away from him and pushed the hair back off his face before touching her forehead to his and sniffling tears away. She debated again, the idea of closing the distance and seeing what it would be like to kiss him again, but rejected the idea. Baby steps might be in order. They never really took that with one another. They had two speeds, nothing at all or everything all at once. Maybe a little bit of time and distance would be helpful. A little bit. Not a lot. Besides, she couldn't lose herself to him just yet; Emma was still out there and Rumple was right, she was ruthless. If they didn't figure a way out of this quickly then they'd be in the same spot with the same problem in a couple of hours.

A sound from behind broke their small quiet bubbled and forced her to glance over her shoulder at the girl lying on the ground. She'd groaned and moved her head back and forth as if she was beginning to wake up again. They couldn't let that happen. "We should leave before she wakes up," she pointed out grabbing his hand to urge him away.

Bur Rumpelstiltskin didn't move the way she'd hoped. He stayed frozen to the ground just as she once had and his eyes gazed down at the woman on the ground with sympathy that she'd never seen him have for someone who wasn't herself or Neal. Not even Henry had warranted such an expression from him. And yet Merida…

"Rumple?"

"No," he muttered glancing down at her. "She's as much a victim as I am. I can't leave her here like this. And who knows what the Dark One will do to her if she returns empty handed."

For a moment she was breathless. Not just speechless, outright breathless from whiplash. Was this _her_ husband? The one that never wanted to help if there wasn't something in it for him, the one that never took pity on strangers and wouldn't even let his own teenage grandson come to work in jeans? It was difficult to believe! And yet the moment he looked back at her with desperate eyes, begging her not to take him away from the red-head she had to believe it. Yes, this was certainly her husband. Just a newer, different version. One uninfected with darkness. It was remarkable! But also disappointing. Not him of course. Her. She didn't want him to be disappointed with what she was about to say.

"Well…we can't take her with us, Emma will just use her to try and kill us again. She'll order her to and she won't have a choice."

Rumple nodded but then glanced back as the girl moaned again, louder and with more substance. She was waking up. They really had to go.

"Rumple-"

"I parked the car at the top of the hill…I believe there is some rope in the back. We'll bind her hands, and her feet if we must. Emma may have her heart but she's limited by her puppets abilities. Merida is not super human. If she wakes up, the rope should prevent her from causing too much trouble. My leg…will you fetch it for me."

Well, that…that might actually work. For a limited time only she was sure but for now…it would at least let them see if the girl was alright. "Okay," she sighed as she turned to walk up the mountain. Her foot slipped on something. She gasped and-

She didn't hit the ground because there were hands at her waist keeping her on her feet. Rumpelstiltskin. She couldn't help the smile that spread across her face as he helped her right herself and asked if she was alright. "Fine just…just not in the best shoes for hiking."

"Can you get back to the top or do you need me to-"

"No, it's fine," she assured him. "I'm just…Rumple…I'm just really glad your back." Her voice was nothing but a breath of air because she couldn't believe that thought had come out of her mouth the way it had. She hadn't meant for it to, and she found herself blushing.

When she finally managed the courage to look up at him, she found his gaze trained on hers and one corner of his mouth lifted up in a smirk. "I'm glad you helped me stay," he confirmed. Again the urge was strong, to just reach over and give him a kiss in a situation like this would have been natural for both of them. But she managed once more to resist.

"I'll uh…I'll go get the rope," she insisted instead and began to slow climb up the hill she'd tumbled down.

* * *

 **The place that we all could have ended 5x06 on and still been happy. I was happy that there was enough open-endedness in this episode that I could add a little bit more on to the end of this scene. I hope that you'll think it works well enough.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, NejiHina100, Ladybugsmomma, Matty, and Kathryn Claire O'Connor, for the reviews you've left and really just for all your loyalty throughout this fiction. I can't tell you how much I appreciate your support and encouragement throughout it all. And now I really hope that you'll like the chapters that follow! I hope they are touching and tense and a whole lot of what we could have had but didn't. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	36. The Bear with the Bow

The rope was right where he'd said it would be, in the trunk of the car which was parked a small distance from where she figured she'd started running. It was as if when he'd turned around he'd tried to look for her before moving on. She liked that. It made her smile, which made her think about just how long it had been since she'd done something like smile! How tragic was it that she honestly couldn't remember. She felt like she'd been living in a state of emergency for the last three weeks, longer if she counted the six weeks they'd been gone, which she assumed hadn't been any more fun, and longer than that if she counted the time that he'd been gone. But for the first time in a long time that feeling of complete and utter distress passed and it felt…remarkable! In her youth, she could remember a time when her nurse had accidentally tied her corset too tight, the feeling she'd had when she'd finally got back to her room and taken it off, the feeling of being able to breathe again without pressure against her chest…this felt like that. Beyond words and immeasurable all at once. It was good.

But she still wasn't living in a world of naivety. She knew there was work to do; she knew they needed time, and it scared her. This moment was perfect, but she felt like they lived a romance of moments. Each one was good all on its own but when the moments expanded into a full story that was when they got stuck. That was when she ended up on a road alone at night like before.

Her eyes glazed over as she stared down the road toward the orange line where their moments had ended last time. Her knees shook at the idea of it all, and the thought nearly made her turn and run all over again, to save herself the heartache she feared might be coming. But somewhere in the dark she heard a twig snap, and it broke her concentration.

She looked wildly around at the sound, waiting to see Emma emerge from the shadows. But she didn't. Nothing seemed any different, not to her. "H-hello!" she called out wandering out into the middle of the street. "Is anyone there?!" Nothing but silence greeted her. She couldn't even hear the bats screech or the cricket's slow chirp.

Rumple. She was up here, and he was still down the hill with Merida. He was alone with a bear and her bow, unrestrained while the Dark One still held her heart captive. She didn't have time to be calling out something that may or may not be there and may or may not want to kill her. So without a further thought and a resolution to live in the moment that they were in and not worry too much about the story that was unwritten she made her way carefully back down the hill.

It wasn't easy. She had no idea how Rumple made it down in one piece or how she and Rumple were going to get Merida up in one piece unconscious and tied. She slipped three times on her way down. But how to travel with Merida would be a far better problem than how to beat her. She'd take that any day over-

The sight that greeted her at the bottom of the hill put her in the mindset to run all over again. Rumple was there, still standing on two feet, hands resting on his cane. And there at his feet Merida sat, head in her hands, fingers threaded through her thick curls.

"Rumple!" she burst out. "Grab her bow!"

"Belle-"

"No! No!" the girl shouted when she picked her head up in the direction of the shout. She quickly rose to her two feet and bolted around Rumpelstiltskin. She dropped the rope and turned to run.

"Belle it's okay!" Rumple shouted making her stop.

"It's okay!" Merida echoed stepping up to her. "It's okay. I won' hurt you!"

She took a couple of deep breaths as she examined the woman before her. She wouldn't hurt her after she'd done nothing but try to kill her all afternoon?! "You won't?" she questioned confused.

"No," Merida assured her with a big smile. "I don't have the urge anymore. I must have fought it off."

"It's because you drank the potion," Rumple muttered from behind them. "You told me that Emma ordered you to drink the 'Spell of Mordu'."

"Spell of Mordu?"

"Aye and I did," Merida responded quickly.

Rumple nodded again. "She ordered you to drink it, and you did. You did as you were told, your obligation was fulfilled. The only way you'd come after us again was if Emma ordered you to which she _can_ still do when she realizes her mistake and so for what is about to happen I am sorry, but it's a precaution we must take."

And finally, Rumple walked toward them and took the rope from her. Merida seemed to understand and straightened her back with a nod before making fists and putting them behind her back. The only comment she made the entire time was that he could and should bind the ropes tighter.

She almost felt bad for her. No, that was a lie, she did feel bad for her. She honestly couldn't be sure who Merida was, but she knew that no one deserved what she'd endured, what she must have been enduring. Regina had removed the memories of what she'd forced her to when she'd held her heart captive, but the memories of how she'd felt afterward remained. And it was the oddest feeling she'd ever experienced. She couldn't imagine what Merida was going through knowing that at any moment she could be forced to kill.

"What happened to you?" she asked as Rumple finished the job on her hands. "Where did Emma find you?"

"Which time? Here? Or there?"

Here or there? Camelot? "You met Emma in Camelot?"

"The first time, aye. Crazy lass, I should have killed 'er when I had the chance."

"You wouldn't have been able to," Rumple explained behind her. "Not unless you had the dagger and then her fate would be yours."

Merida was silent for a moment and appeared to take in the news that was just presented to her before widening her stance and shrugging it off. "I don't know anything abou' a dagger, but I know my sword would have at least given 'er a run for 'er money, eh."

Rumple smirked at that and nodded. "Probably," he murmured as he came to stand by her side again. She felt like they were talking in riddles or maybe just a foreign language that she just didn't understand. She shook her head and glanced at the red head again. "You met Emma in Camelot!" she blanched all over again in an attempt to push the conversation forward.

"Aye tha' I did. I was in Camelot chasin' after a Will O' the Wisp, I needed help to find my brothers and those wisps were my only hope. But Emma was lookin' for 'em too. We worked together for a time, but when I heard her talked to nothin' but the air at night about killin' me off I go' outta there as fast as I could."

Emma was off looking for a Will O' the Wisp? "When was this?" she questioned.

"Must have been about nine weeks ago, not that I remember six of those weeks," Merida answered. Her hopes fell. She'd been so hoping that Merida had her memories and that she was somehow talking about what she'd experienced in the middle of their six weeks in Camelot. But nine weeks meant that it had been right in the beginning, possibly before they'd even arrived and found Emma. That would certainly explain talking to herself at night. Or at least it explained the "night" part. The talking to herself on the other hand…

"But that was only just the beginning," Merida went on. "I guess I didn't get away from 'er fast enough because she came after me. The next thing I know she has my heart in the palm of her hand."

"Emma's had your heart for nine weeks?" she questioned. That meant that Emma would have had it in her hand when they'd found her in-

"No. She returned it then, thanks to the crowd of people that came chasin' after her and convinced her to give it back. She took my heart for good a few days ago. I've been in the woods since we got here, trying to figure out this crazy world I woke up in one night and find my brothers. That's when Emma found me. She looked different than she does now, told me she wanted to make up for what she'd done in Camelot and could help me find my brothers, it wasn't until after she captured me and tied me to her dead yellow beast that she changed into the witch she is now!

"She kept me tied there until a couple days ago when she took my heart and kept me in a strange chamber in her house until I started training you," she finished motioning at Rumple with her chin.

Her story was odd and missing pieces but who wasn't missing pieces from Camelot. Still, for the most part, she was able to follow the tale, right up until the odd chamber part that struck a chord of excitement within her again. Another part of the house they'd neglected to search? Was there anything important there?

"Where did she keep you?" she questioned. "Can you describe it?"

Merida shrugged. "Little white room with a mirror, bowl, and a broken fountain of some kind."

"Broken fountain?"

"Great big heavy bowl on the floor with a cover on it and an odd little handle. Pushed it once…it worked for a minute, water left and came back in, then it was broken again."

She tried to think in a way that she hadn't for years. She tried to think through the eyes of who she'd been when she'd just been freed from the asylum and knew nothing of this world. Only one thing came to mind that fit that description, and it wasn't a secret chamber, just an odd one from their world.

"A bathroom," she announced looking at Rumple. "Emma kept her in a bathroom." He nodded in agreement. "So…what do we do now?" she asked turning toward him. "Where do we go from here? Do we contact the others? Do we confront her?"

"Confront Emma you must!" Merida blurt out. "She said she knew what happened to my brothers! I have to know where they are, if they're still alive! It's life and death please!"

"Emma might have been lying to you-"

"If Emma cast the curse then she'd know where they were," Rumple corrected her.

"But is Emma really just going to tell her _or_ return her heart if we politely knock on the door and ask?" she questioned sarcastically. Telling the others seemed like a brighter idea to her. They needed help in this, confronting the Dark One when all the cards seemed to be in her hands just didn't seem like a smart idea. And yet…

Rumple shook his head. "No, she won't. But…with the right amount of leverage and the right person who knows how to think like a Dark One would…Merida's right. We need to confront her. We need to go back to Emma."

* * *

 **Filler chapter, but totally necessary. The guys are infamous for putting bits of conversations, things that the characters shouldn't know yet because they haven't been discussed, in only a short period of time. So naturally I have to put that all in here. I want everyone to be on the same page. It's not so much a big deal to me. I get why they do it, if a chapter like this was a scene it would be a pretty boring and useless one. So while conversations like this are not necessarily new information, it is important information that I feel needs to go back into Moments, but doesn't necessarily need to be on the show. Back when Moments was just starting years ago these were actually the scenes that I absolutely loved writing. I hope you'll like it too, filler or not.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Carlyle23, Fox24, Teresa Martin, Rumbellefan, and Ladybugsmomma, for your awesome reviews. I'm glad that you are liking these chapters and not minding the slower pace. I suppose it is good to savor episodes like this, before things got all crazy and frankly just random on the show. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	37. The Hero Triumphant

The three of them found Emma's house unguarded tonight. It looked just as ominous, still, and unlivable in the darkness as it did in the daylight. But no one seemed to want to admit it as they stood outside the door staring up at the blue home. "Are you sure this is what you have to do?" she questioned looking it over outside. There was no protection spell to fight, no lock on the basement door. The three of them descended as she had yesterday. Little had changed.

"He must," Merida snapped at her almost immediately. There was no protection spell to fight, no lock on the basement door. The three of them descended as she had yesterday. Little had changed.

A moment later Rumple agreed. "I must."

This time, there was no protection spell to fight, no lock on the basement door. The three of them simply descended the basement stairs as she had yesterday; nervous and curious all at the same time.

"He bested be! Fair and square!" Merida called out on the stairs. She might have had something to say about the fair part, but as they finally reached their goal and she was able to see the Dark One standing there, blocking her view of Excalibur she realized it didn't matter anymore. What was done was done and now…they needed to be very careful. That was what Rumple had said on the car ride over. Let him do the talking, show no weakness, give her no reason to get angry. In fact, if it could be arranged, give her no reason even to notice you. That wasn't going to be difficult. Emma had sent Merida out to kill her, she doubted the woman thought enough of her to really notice her standing there.

"I was getting worried, for a moment I thought I was going to have to drag you down here myself," she drawled in her icy voice before turning to them. Oh, how had Emma fallen this far?

"No, a hero never runs away from his problems," Rumple responded stepping up to this skinnier, paler version of Emma. She advanced but stopped when he did too, barely a hint of hesitation in his step. It was remarkable what a little encouragement and understanding could do for a man. It was powerful enough to replace the confidence that magic had once given him, and it was beautiful.

"Now as a former Dark One I know you won't stop wreaking havoc until I pull that sword from that stone!" he stated, moving around her as though she was nothing.

"Good, we understand each other," she responded.

"And I also know…that you won't be able to resist making a deal," he went on as though she'd said nothing. His voice was confident and tempting, and one look at Emma and she recognized a look Rumple often had when someone had his attention even when he didn't want to give it. He was right. He knew her better than she knew herself at the moment. "So how about I pull Excalibur…in exchange for Merida's heart-"

"And my brothers!" Merida inserted quickly despite Rumple's earlier warnings to let him talk. "I want to know what happened to them."

Rumple was already walking around the stone, anticipating her acceptance, words Emma hadn't given yet. And if the look on her face was any indication it was driving her mad. She didn't like this version of losing.

"You really think you're in a position to make deals?" Emma finally responded turning to face him.

"Oh that's exactly what I think," he said as he circled the stone.

The words…she nearly forgot the danger and smiled. He sounded like himself, just as he always had. She'd been worried about how much of himself, how much of the man she loved, had been taken up by the beast, now she could see it wasn't as bad as she'd thought. He was who she'd always known him to be. Terrifying as that was, it was a relief. And knowing that he was right didn't hurt either.

When Emma spun back around to face them she had a glowing red heart in her hand. Merida's heart. Emma stared her down and suddenly Merida was taking steps forward without any verbal request from Emma. She could see her body had gone ridged, and she was shaking as she leaned forward as though her heart was a tether.

She held her breath, trying to remember to be as confident as Rumpelstiltskin looked and not yell at Emma to simply grow up and do what was right. There was more than one way for this to end up poorly. But she caught Rumple's eyes, and he gave her a soft nod of reassurance. She swallowed down her fear, glanced back at the two, and heard Merida gasp as Emma made a quick motion to touch-more like shove at-her chest.

She'd done it. She'd put the heart back!

"I was finished with this anyway," Emma stated in her husky voice. Merida struggled to breathe. She saw her take deep long gasps, longer than the ones she was taking out of relief and she quickly stepped forward to untie her hands, to allow her to get more air in her chest.

"And the brothers?" Rumple questioned as she took her shaky hand and pulled her away from Emma.

"They're fine, safe and sound by her mother's side, now get on with it!" Emma yelled turning back to him.

"Wait!" she interrupted suddenly, remembering how Regina had stopped Killian and how Rumple had said Emma needed a hero to pull the stone. It wasn't booby trapped was it? And even if it wasn't this was just one good flash of bravery. And while she thought that he was heroic because it was always inside of him…what would happen if the sword felt otherwise? "What happens if he can't pull it from the stone?" she questioned.

"Then you'll be sweeping his remains from the floor, you were his maid once!"

Her mouth dropped open at the pronouncement. That was it? That was what happened? Either a hero pull it out or…or a person that attempted it died? She felt her eyes go wide as she watched Rumple. Had he known that? Had he known that he'd die if he couldn't get the stone out? Yes, he had. One look on his face as he looked it over and she knew…he'd known from the very beginning. No wonder he'd been so afraid. It was heroism or…or death?!

But now he didn't seem afraid or even hesitant. He reached forward, turned his hand to fit the sword...and pulled away.

"Belle." She glanced up to find he wasn't staring at the sword anymore. Just her. That look, like even with the Dark One here they were the only two people in the room. How could he do that? Cast spells without magic? She watched as he backed away from the sword and set his hands down on the rock and for a moment she worried he wasn't going to do it, that he was going to apologize, refuse, and run away. She probably wouldn't blame him.

"Just in case this doesn't work…I want you to know that I am sorry for everything," he said before looking up at her.

She felt her mouth curve downward and tears gather in her eyes once more. He was sorry. Truly, apologetically, and regretfully, sorry.

"If I had to do it all over again, I would make sure I was the man you deserved right from the very start. I would change everything for you."

She felt her chest tighten and struggled to contain her tears. She longed to hear words like that for months! She'd longed to hear an apology like that for all that he'd done to her, for every trick and lie and deception and now…no, even with that she still wasn't ready to completely forgive him or even trust him. That would take time. But she was ready to begin again. She was ready to take him up on his offer. They could do it all over again. From here on out they could start fresh they could be honest with each other, they could love each other. They just had to get out of this room.

"It's never too late," she assured him, begging him to get this over with so that they could have this fresh start. Suddenly every fear she'd had melted away into nothingness. He was what she'd always seen. Not what he'd always wished, what she'd always known was there. He was a hero. And he could pull the sword from the stone, and he could go with her. And they could figure out a way to keep the darkness at bay! Together. They just had to take a step forward.

He nodded and smiled as if he understood, as if he'd just read her thoughts once more and the hope that she'd given him was enough strength and courage that he needed to do this. Then he turned his attention back to Excalibur, the infamous sword in the stone, and reached out. His hand twisted, his fingers curled around the handle of the blade, she held her breath as he paused and she watched waiting for death or life to spring forth from the bolder. Rumple tugged, there was a sound of metal grinding against rock, and from out of the stone came a silver and black blade, half-formed because the tip was gone. Because it had power over him for so many years and now it didn't. How fitting.

She finally breathed again as he examined it and felt a hand on her back that she figured could only be Merida, but it wasn't the hand that she wanted. Rumple. She wanted his touch. And every fiber of her being wanted to rush over to him this instant and throw her arms around his neck and kiss him as she should have an hour ago. But instead, she resisted. She watched as he examined the sword for a moment then nodded almost proudly. "Oh well…a deal's a deal," he exclaimed before tossing it forward so that it landed at Emma's feet.

The room began to move again. The hand on her back disappeared, Emma stepped forward and picked up the sword, and that left Rumple to simply grab his cane and walk out of the light that surrounded the sword. "Now you may have Excalibur, but you've made one mistake in all of this, one terrible mistake…" he explained as he moved away from the rock and faced Emma again. "You've turned me into a hero."

She expected more before he stepped aside and looked into his eyes and realized that was all the threat he'd needed to make. He was a hero. Emma was the villain. He was going to stop her, or at least help them to stop her. They were the sweetest words she'd heard all day.

"There are heroes all over this town, and none of them have been able to stop me yet," Emma growled as he moved away and held out a hand for her.

Rumple stopped in his footsteps and glanced back at her. "Well, that's because none of them…are me!" he hissed in her ear.

Finally, they moved forward. Emma didn't stop them as they made their way out of the cave, up her basement stairs, and back into the dark of Storybrooke night. They were free to go. Free to start a new life and vanquish the villain together.

* * *

 **Now that we're passed all of that the hard work begins: getting from this chapter to the chapter we all know and are dreading. It was difficult to write, but just to give one little idea before we get to some of the bigger ones, part of what I think happened in this episode, her declaration and words, I think it could be said that the situation demanded something like that. I also think it could be said, and I think I have said it before, that one of Belle's weaknesses is that she can be impulsive. There are times that she does things without thinking and in the past those things have led to some pretty stupid decisions. I think in this fiction it really turns everything on it's head and those decisions, those gut instincts, are really what she should be listening to. But when she gets home and starts thinking about her choices, then over thinking it, I think that is where she runs into trouble. I believe she is being genuine in her declarations here, no matter how stressed. I think what happened in 5x10 was that she had time to think about it and that is where fear crept up on her. Kinda like how I can totally ride Tower of Terror when there is a 20 minute wait but if I have to wait and think about it any longer than that I chicken out. True story.**

 **Thank you, Carlyle23, Fox24, Rumbellefan, Teresa Martin, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews you left on the last chapter! I hope that this chapter is up to standard and I really hope that you'll stick with me for the next section of this fiction as things get kind of crazy. I can assure you that there are some chapters in there we've been waiting to see for a long time. Let's do this thing! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	38. A Seesaw of Emotions

She felt like she had eyes on the back of her neck all the way out of Emma's property. The moment they closed the gate behind them the chill that she'd had at the back of her vanished and cool air overwhelmed her sensations. She felt like they'd just escaped from hell completely unscathed and the chance of that happening ever again, especially now that Emma had the sword, was slim and maybe even virtually non-existent.

The next thing she knew she spun around, threw her arms around his neck, and buried her face into his shoulder. He caught her with an involuntary "oomph!" and placed his arms around her waist automatically. "It's okay," he cooed as she fought the urge to cry like a baby. "It's okay."

"I was so worried," she whispered in his ear. And it was true. It wasn't okay for her to be whimpering like a child, acting like some damsel in distress, but she really hadn't known how scared she'd been until he'd pulled the sword out and been whole and hers again! She felt like the world had stopped working right then. But now...

"I know…but hey!" the hands at her back moved to her waist so he could push her back and look her in the eyes. "We made it out, we'll stop her."

She nodded and once again felt the urge rise inside of her. It started in her chest, a place just below her neck, that pushed her forward, that made her want to leap back into his arms and put her mouth on his and-

"No' to interrupt the family reunion…but now what? How exactly are we going to stop Emma?" Merida questioned beside them, her arms crossed protectively over her chest as if she was worried that Emma was going to show up again at any moment and take her heart back.

"Well, that's a difficult question we have to ask ourselves," Rumple answered. "There are more things that Emma needs in order to restore the sword…what are the chances that she has them?"

She shook her head. She didn't know what she needed, but she didn't need to, either way the answer would be the same. "There's no way to tell. No one can remember anything from the six weeks in Camelot and the three weeks here Emma has kept to herself, no one has been able to get to her. She may have what she needs; she may not."

"What does she need?" Merida questioned. "Maybe I've seen something."

"No, it's nothing you'd be able to see," Rumple corrected. "But it is someone that she can hear and us when she responds."

"The voices Emma hears? The ones that she talks to?" Merida assumes.

"When you first become the Dark One a…shall we call it the spirit of all Dark Ones, appears and helps you with the transition. I saw Zoso, the man I acquired the curse from, for a short while after my own transition."

"A short while…Rumple…Emma's been the Dark One for nearly nine weeks now, more than two months-"

"No, no, it's not about time it's about acceptance," he interrupted quickly. "The visions stop when you accept the power of the Dark One and embrace it. I took on the power willingly, I didn't fight it, I used it immediately for Bae. Emma is different."

"So…Emma hearing or… _seeing_ people would actually be a good thing," she realized.

"How is tha' a good thing?" Merida questioned.

"It means that she's conflicted," Rumple explained. "She's not nearly as Dark as she looks, somewhere deep down there is a piece of the Emma Swan we know and she's fighting back. It might not be a great thing, but it's something at least."

"That's fine and dandy. Now how do I find my brothers? Emma said they were with my mother, that they were safe, but she didn't tell me where they were!"

"If your mother and brothers came over with the curse then I know where they might be," she answered for her. "Everyone who came over from Camelot was scattered in the woods, they've managed to find most of them in the last couple of weeks and put a camp together."

"I'm not from Camelot," Merida argued. "I may have been there when I first met Emma, but I never intended to stay. And my mother and brothers, they weren't in Camelot!"

"Not nine weeks ago," she pointed out before she could get on a role. "We have no idea what happened the six weeks after that. Your family could have gone to Camelot to find you-"

"Or they're back in our realm," Rumple pointed out. "People who cast this curse have the ability to take who they want from distant lands and even realms, leaving those they don't want. You met Emma before, it's always possible that you went home with your family and she took you for this particular job and left your family behind."

She knew that he meant well, that the words were intended to bring peace to Merida but she knew instantly that it was the wrong thing to say. And one look at Merida's face, her wide eyes as her jaw dropped and she looked between the two of them and she had no doubt that news should not have been delivered as bluntly as it had been. Hope was a powerful thing. Merida needed it just like they do.

"What're ya saying?! That I'm here, and they're there, and we-"

"What we're saying is that you should go to the camp," she interrupted quickly, doing her best to curb her panic. "You should look around and see if anyone looks familiar. If not then try not to panic, Mary Margaret and David, my friends, they are working on delivering you all back to your land as soon as we can. You'll get home to them, they won't give up until you do."

"Determination isn't the same as success."

"It is for them," Rumple responded. "Listen to Belle, let us take you to the camp and you can search for your family there."

"And if they're not there?!" she demanded.

She sighed and wished that she had better news, or maybe just the words to say it in a more encouraging way. "If they're not there, then your brothers are with your mother, and you can trust what Emma said. They're safe and sound together, and soon you will be by their side too."

Merida didn't like that answer. Her jaw clamped tight and she saw a nerve in her neck twitch at the news. But then she rolled her eyes and her perfectly straight back slouched as she blew a bit of air up into her wild hair and then gave up and pushed it out of her face. "So it's back in the big ugly beast again then is it?"

Dire as their situation was, she had to resist the urge not to laugh for Rumpelstiltskin's sake. "The uh…the car, yes," she answered.

"Alright then!" And with that Merida marched off down the street, opened the backseat door, slid in, and she watched her head disappear as she flopped down across the bench seat. She didn't rush to join her. All things considered, she understood if Merida felt she needed a few moments to herself to process what she was hearing, the truth that she found herself living in.

"Belle." She flinched. Not at the sound of her own name, but as she'd taken a few steps away he'd reached out for her arm, and she was quick to pull it out of his grasp with a gasp. It burned. His touch on her arm, even though the red jacket she was wearing, even after all he'd done…that touch was still too much. It was enough to make her heart race. Enough to make her need to take a step further away to a safe distance. How was it possible she was still having reactions like that after tonight? How was it possible that one second she wanted to kiss him and the next she pulled away as though he was on fire?

But if he noticed her reaction, he pretending not to. Just rested his other hand on top of the cane and glanced back at the house. "There is running away, and then there is being smart," he whispered. "Pulling the sword out of the stone was the only leverage I had over her I can't protect you if she comes back."

She glanced up at the house behind him. Emma's house. Should they really be having this conversation so close? It felt…odd. "Ahem…" she cleared her throat and motioned away from the house, toward the car down the street that Merida had so ungracefully set herself down in. They walked. She hesitated. Old instincts told her to reach out and wrap her hand around his elbow. New instincts forced her to keep a distance that could fit another person between them. It was hard to believe that in the heat of the moment she'd thrown herself into his arms and then pulled back so quickly. It was hard to believe that standing so close to him, without fighting, without hating him, would make her heart beat in this way. It was nerves. But not the kind it used to be. It almost felt like fear. Maybe it was…

"We can't run," she muttered as they strolled casually outside the house of the Dark One. "I won't run, I won't cross the town line, not as long as Henry and Neal are still here."

"I'd be foolish to ask you to again," he conceded. "But with your permission, I would like to use a bit of magic that I have stashed away at the shop for a rainy day. It's nothing as grand as I used to have but it might be enough to get us to safety if Emma should choose to come after us."

"Sometimes the simplest answer is the best answer. What do you have?"

"Squid ink, from the rarest of squids that dwell at the bottom of a-"

"Bottomless ocean!" she interrupted already knowing the squid he was talking about. "Ink from that squid it…it would be powerful enough to paralyze Emma!"

"Not for long of course but-"

"Just long enough!" she breathed as she broke out into a smile. "Rumple that…that is a very good idea."

"It's an idea I got from you," he admitted glancing over at her. "When you told me you carried a freezing potion in your bag, something that would be just big enough for you to strike and escape as fast as you could…it was a good idea then and it's something that I hope will keep us safe for as long as this lasts."

As long as this lasts. Memories of Rumple pulling the sword from the stone nearly made her shiver in the chilly night. Emma wanted the sword, and now she had it. What was to stop her now?

"How do we stop her?" she asked when they arrived at the car. "Do you have any ideas?"

He nodded. "Merida first and then we fetch the squid ink from the shop. I fear it might come in handy even sooner than we think."

* * *

 **I'm sorry the next couple of episodes just made me shake my head because they made no sense, timeline wise. These guys are always looking for ways to expand time, they randomly skip three to six weeks and then sometimes a year just to drag it out but for some reason, all of 5x06-5x08 must happen in the same night. The rest of this plotline is less than forty-eight hours and it just blows my mind that they would do that instead of just take it day by day! Ridiculous. Also, this chapter exists so that I can get us into the 5x08 chapters. I hated the fact that this was all so compact, but I hated, even more, the fact that Merida more or less just up and disappears after all this is over without a word. Was it just me, or was that really stupid?**

 **Thank you, Teresa Martin, Fox24, NejiHina100, Rumbellefan, Carlyle23, and Ladybugsmomma, for your very kind very amazing reviews. I'm glad you liked the chapter. Get ready ya'll, up next we start the 5x08 chapters and if I do say so myself there are some really awesome conversations in there. Get excited. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	39. Reflections of a Former Dark One

They dropped Merida off at the camp with instructions to find them at the shop if she couldn't find her family. She didn't really respond, just looked out the window, blew a breath of air out her mouth, and left the car. From her place in the front seat she watched her walk across the field they found themselves in, bow in hand, toward the tent city. She seemed determined and strong, but she knew that looks could be deceiving. Was she really as alright with all of this as she seemed?

"She'll be alright," Rumple muttered beside her.

"People aren't always as strong as they seem, Rumple," she responded keeping her eyes on Merida. She didn't even really know why she cared as much as she did. Merida had done nothing but try to kill her. But she felt worried for her all the same.

"No…sometimes they're stronger than they seem."

They drove back to the shop in an awkward silence, every feeling of the natural affection they'd shared earlier in the night had disappeared and when she saw David, Robin, and Killian drive passed them she was happy just to have something to talk about again, though "I don't know what they're doing" could only go so far. She called of course, but no one answered. In place of a discussion she simply sent messages that she had Rumple and they were going to the shop to wait for an update. Throughout the rest of the drive, she found herself casting glances at the hand resting on his knee as opposed the steering wheel like he usually did. It was an experiment. Would she take his hand, wouldn't she…

In the end, she just turned her head to look out the front and focused every ounce of concentration she had to not look back over at him or his hand. What it took not to reach over and take his hand, to remember that though he had done the right thing, the heroic thing, it didn't release him from everything he'd done wrong before this. That still needed to be addressed.

They arrived at the shop not a moment too soon as far as she was concerned and she popped right out of the car the moment it was parked outside. The door was a hopeless case at the moment. One of the windows was broken and although the knob still worked she had doubts that the lock would work unless repaired. For a moment she thought to question who people in this town called when doors were broken like this. Doormen? But then she nearly laughed. It was too normal a thought for the odd day, the odd week that she'd had. And it wasn't important anyway. If Emma came after them, no matter what spell they tried to protect the shop with, a perfect window and the best lock known to this world wouldn't keep her out.

"Where uh…where's the squid ink?" she questioned the moment they stepped inside the shop. She knew the answer just by the determination and direction of his gate. It was in the safe. Naturally.

"Just here," he muttered making his way around the counter, swinging forward the painting, opening the safe, and-

"Or at least it was…" he muttered tapping his hand against the safe.

"Was? Not anymore?"

He moved out of the way and made a motion with his hand to show her the inside of the safe, though it meant little to her. Things moved in and out of that safe all the time. In fact, they moved so often she wasn't entirely convinced it wasn't magic. Or even her. "Well…" she sighed. "I moved a lot of things around when Cruella and Ursula came to town, stashed a lot of your potions around the shop for protection, even made some of my own. Maybe I put it somewhere else. It still could be here we just have to look around."

She heard him move, the shuffle of his feet and the sound of his cane but it was slower than she was. That was understandable. She could never have named the hiding spots off the top of her head, but as she looked around the room, she felt like they were easy enough to find, only because she'd put them there and she'd designed them that way. They stuck out like a sore thumb to her, to anyone else, an intruder either magical or non-magical, they just looked like baubles, vials, ancient daggers, even an antique crossbow Granny had lent her.

"Rumple, there are some…what are you doing?" He wasn't on the other side of the counter, he'd moved just as she'd heard to the other side and stood looking at something. A snowglobe. An ordinary snowglobe with Storybrooke inside of it. She'd seen it before, it was a pawned item in his shop but…had it always been there? She could hardly remember it was so unimportant. So why was he looking down into it right now as though it was the real thing? As if they were all trapped inside and there was nothing he could do to help? Sympathy was not an expression she'd seen often, but she recognized the regret easily enough.

"Rumple…" she prompted again.

"There was a time I wanted to hold the entire world, not just all of Storybrooke, in the palm of my hand," he whispered so lightly she could barely hear him. "The curse is so seductive, more so than I ever realized. It's only now that it's gone I can see clearly just how wrong it was to want to hold something so material and inconsequential as close as I did." She heard what he was saying, but she wasn't quite sure what he meant by it. The words seemed meaningful but spontaneous and distant all at the same time. She wasn't even sure he knew what he was saying. Or why for that matter! What had prompted that statement? Surely not just a snowglobe!

Suddenly, from across the room, he sighed as he shook the globe and watched the snow drift sadly down onto the little version of their home. "From where I am now, right back in the place that I started before I had the curse I can't help but wonder if it was what was best. If I shouldn't have just let you break it all those years ago and been content with what I had."

She shook her head. Even with all their problems and what had happened months ago, she couldn't allow him to have such thoughts. Yes, that was an awful time, but she understood it. She knew why he'd refused her, and she knew why he couldn't just let the curse go then. That part she understood.

"If you'd done that you never would have gotten Neal back."

"Maybe that would have been for the better."

"Rumple-"

"If I hadn't come after Neal, maybe his life would have been better. He would have lived out his life with Emma and Henry by his side, you and I could have started a family years ago and never been parted, Zelena would have remained in Oz, the curse would be gone from all the realms…from where I stand now it seems to me that not knowing would have been worth all the lives that have been lost."

She didn't know that she knew exactly what to say to something like that. The life Neal would have had before he'd arrived was beyond comprehension. And Rumple…she wasn't sure if words would help at the moment. He seemed so far away, distant. Not just literally, but figuratively as well. Standing by the register when she was all the way across the room…she'd felt so confident about all this an hour ago, but now that they were here, together, alone in this little room…it still felt like the right place to be, but it also felt like there were a million things between the two of them as well.

Neal…they should probably talk about Neal.

"You didn't know what you know now then, Rumple," she muttered. "But selfish as it may seem I'm glad I knew him. I don't think I'd trade anything in the world for knowing him. He was a remarkable man, brave, and…he'd be proud of what you did tonight, of all that you've accomplished. He'd be proud of the man you've become. You and Henry."

Still, he didn't refute her. Just kept his gaze fully locked on the globe in his hands and turned it over again. She didn't know what more to say to him. She wasn't sure he was in a place words would reach. Frankly, she wasn't sure anything-

The sound of the door opening and the bell chiming made her forget her thoughts and jump. But her reaction was perfectly automatic. The crossbow Granny had lent her was by her side, it was all too easy to quickly pick it up and train it on…Killian.

Not Emma. Only Killian.

"Crocodile," Killian muttered as he shut the door behind him. "We need to talk."

She saw his shoulders tense instantly. No. This was never a relationship that would ever be healed. "Didn't you hear?" he muttered finally turning to face him. "I'm not that man anymore." She bit the inside of her cheek as she watched them, she bit to the point of pain because from the conversation they'd had earlier today she knew that everyone had heard he wasn't that man anymore. They just didn't care.

"Belle," she glanced away from Hook at his word and found his gaze on her. "You can uh…" he made an odd motion with his hand and suddenly she realized that she'd never put the crossbow down. Foolish really, it was just when he came she'd had a feeling and…a feeling was just a feeling. She couldn't even put words to it.

"Yeah, sorry," she excused setting it aside. "I thought you might be Emma."

"It's a good thing I'm not," Killian commented as she moved around the counter. "A cross bow wouldn't do you much good."

"Well best we could manage," Rumple said from where he'd moved behind the counter again. "I did have some squid ink set aside for a rainy day but unfortunately…" she watched as Rumple swung the picture forward again, opened the safe, and peeked in as if the contents had changed sometime between then and now. "She found it."

"Dark Ones are clever like that," he said in a low, frustrated tone before taking a few steps toward them. "Clever enough to make everyone believe that they've _really_ changed." She had to bite her cheek again. She knew that it wasn't fun for Killian, hearing all this about Emma, she knew first hand. And yet he still couldn't find the time to be more sympathetic. They really had been doing so well up until this morning. "I need to know what's going on inside Emma's head now. She says she's doing all this because of me."

"This isn't about what you did. It's about what she did."

"You're sure of that?"

Rumple gave a small nod. "I seen the look on her face, one that I…I know only too well: regret. I became the Dark One to save my son, committed countless sins along the way, convinced myself I would atone for them all once I found him. But things never work out the way you think they will," he concluded with a distant look in his eye that made her want to reach forward and touch his shoulder. When had she moved so close to him again? "If you want to know what Emma Swan is after, find out what she's atoning for."

"And how do I do that?" Killian spat back. "I've been looking all over for her she doesn't want to be found!"

"Then you have to give her a reason to find you," Rumple answered easily enough. "Think hard…you'll come up with something."

* * *

 **I know this chapter seems short, but that's because this chapter is kind of like an introduction to the next chapter. I am so excited for all of you to read it. No, it's not my favorite chapter (that is the second to last chapter, if you'll recall), but it's a very close second. Up next, we get the conversation that we've been dying to have since season 4 ya'll. And I hope that I do it justice!**

 **Thank you, thank you, thank you, Fox24, Teresa martin, Carlyle23, Rumbellefan, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews you left for me. It's much appreciated! I'm always happy to hear the chapters are being enjoyed and even more thrilled that I'm beginning to hear some people say that 5x10 is already seeming less out of left field. I hope you've enjoyed this chapter, and I hope you are excited for the next chapter; I know I am! On to the next, Peace and Happy Reading!**


	40. The Toughest Real Thing

She was proud of Rumpelstiltskin, truly she was.

A few months ago if Killian had stepped inside of this shop and insulted Rumple in the way that he just had, and then asked for help the scene would have looked a lot different than it did today. Probably he would have advanced menacingly, he'd have threatened the pirate's life without a thought, Killian no doubt would have threatened back, she would have stepped between the two of them and managed to get Killian outside, alive, with no answers, and perhaps a slam of the door. The moment that Killian left, the pair of them would fight about his behavior and the right thing to do…

But instead, now they both stood in the shop. Killian left peacefully out the door with his answers. They were alone. And she wasn't sure what she should do with the answer that he'd given to Killian Jones. He'd gone back to staring at the snow globe in his hand, and she stared at the back of his head in confusion because while she understood that answer had been for Killian, it had also, in some way, been for her. And it was a difficult answer to believe.

"Atonement…" the word was no more than a whisper, barely even a breath and she had to swallow and shake her head to get her grounding back again. She could do this. She could have this talk. She'd needed to for months. "Atonement, was that really what it was all about?" she questioned.

"What what was about?" he questioned gently. Oh, how she wished there was an easy answer for that.

"All of it. Before…before we took out the Darkness, and you wrote the book? Before you got into Storybrooke. Before…before…"

"Before the town line?" he finally clarified.

It was difficult to breathe. Her chest felt heavy. For as much as she'd wanted to have this conversation before all of the sudden she found herself wanting desperately to run from the room. Her legs shook, but she stayed in place. She stayed in place and finally nodded. "Yes. Before the town line. I…I uh…I don't understand what there was to atone for?"

"The only thing that mattered, the only thing that I'd spent my life searching for, striving for…"

"Your son. Neal. Baelfire," she finished for him.

"I failed Baelfire," he confirmed quietly. "I couldn't risk ever doing that again with you or with Henry."

She felt the hand around her heart squeeze tighter. She should have known, she had known that he wasn't nearly as fine with everything that had happened during his time with Zelena. She just didn't understand it all. She felt like she had all the pieces she needed they just weren't fitting together! She'd asked him to talk about those times, invited him to grieve, to do anything he needed to do, why hadn't he?! Why had he gone on as though he'd been alone in the world? Why had he stolen the dagger back from her? Why hide so much when she'd been willing to see it?

"How did taking the dagger back and sneaking around behind my back help that?" It was her voice. It was her words asking the questions she wanted to ask, but her body felt so odd. Maybe it was because she'd dreamed of having this conversation for so long and observed it in her head as a ghostly and mysterious third person that she suddenly felt like she was a ghost. Like she was watching herself heartlessly berate him and at the same time cheering herself on because she knew that the questions weren't coming from a heartless place, but quite the opposite. If she didn't care so much, if she didn't love him as much as she did then it would be heartless. This was nothing but heartfelt.

Across the room, Rumpelstiltskin sighed and finally set the snow globe down and turned toward her without looking her in the eye. "You never had the dagger."

She felt every beat of her heart and every breath in her lungs as her eyes widened. "Never had the dagger"? No, that wasn't true. She had it. She could remember. "No. No, Regina-"

"What Regina gave you was the real thing," he interrupted before picking something up off the counter and fiddling with it. Slowly he limped over to her and they stood face to face, oddly enough in nearly the exact same position they had months ago when they'd exchanged the dagger. "What you gave to me was the Dark One Dagger," he informed her holding up…a coin of some kind. Large and gold, she couldn't figure out why that was important, but he held it between them, extended his hand, so it bumped against her arm, but then pulled it back a moment later. She watched as he set his cane against the glass case beside them, flipped the coin in the air, caught it, slapped it on the back of his hand, took it away…and revealed nothing beneath. Before she could lose her breath at the sight of his magic, he reached out, as if to touch her face but only brushed his finger against her ear and held up before her…the gold coin.

She took it from his fingers and felt her frustration, once buried beneath hurt, grow closer to the surface. Magic tricks? The were trying to have a conversation, one of the most important conversations in their life and he was playing-

"It's a slight of hand my father showed me when I was a boy," Rumpelstiltskin explained before she could explode. "You gave me the real dagger, a bit of slide of hand mixed with some actual Dark One magic…you never knew I'd switched them. What I handed you back…that was fake."

She felt as though he'd just kicked her in the stomach. Air came out of her mouth in a gasp and she held her hand over her mouth to try and contain it. She'd always known that at some point she'd had a fake dagger, she just hadn't known that it was that point, that moment, the one he'd asked her to marry him, what should have been one of the single most important moments in their life! And he'd lied to her! Oddly enough, she imagined this would be what it felt like if a woman found out her engagement ring were plastic or stolen. Any other moment she'd prepared herself for. Not that.

"Why?" she managed to squeak out as she let the small of her back rest against a glass. She knew she was crying, she knew that he wanted to touch her, but instead he kept his distance, a very, very smart decision at the moment. "I gave you the dagger, if you wanted it, why not just keep it?"

He was quiet for so long she risked a glance up at him and found pain and frustration etched into every groove on his face. Her stomach turned over as she realized it was a good thing he wasn't bound to the dagger and she didn't have it because she would demand from him this very moment answers!

"I didn't want you to know what I was going to do next."

What he was going to do next, she glanced across the room and took a deep breath. She knew exactly what that meant, and it was taking every fiber of her being to stay planted in this shop instead of run away again at the thought of the words.

"Kill Zelena," she suggested.

Silence greeted her for a heartbeat before she heard him breathe a faint "yes".

She pushed herself off the glass case and walked across the room. Distance. She needed far more of it than she'd allowed before. The only thing keeping her in the store at the moment was the fact that at least he'd been honest this time around.

"I asked you not to do that," she choked out from a safe distance. "I asked you not to kill her!"

"She's not dead!"

"But you thought she was, didn't you!" she shouted back. "You couldn't let her live, let alone go to New York with Robin and Roland, you wouldn't have, you believed she was dead."

"You're right, I couldn't have let her live! Not after what she did to Bae," he argued.

"Bae wouldn't have wanted that Rumple!" she insisted daring to look him straight in the eyes. "Your son wouldn't have cared about what happened to Zelena, he cared about what happened to you! And it wasn't for Bae, that may be what you tell yourself, but it wasn't for Neal. It was for you."

"Maybe it was! Maybe…maybe the thought of another person having the dagger was too much to handle, maybe I wanted it close to me from then on."

"Then you should have taken it from me and not given it back! I never wanted the dagger, Rumple, I told you that over and over again, I tried to give it back to you, and you forced it back into my hands each and every time. You used me as an alibi-"

"And if I truly believed that you would have understood then I would have told you."

"But you didn't."

"No! How could you understand, you've never been a Dark One, you've never had your freedom taken away like that!"

She felt her jaw drop open at the very notion of that. She'd never had her freedom taken away. Really? She couldn't understand because she'd been free her entire life? Free to leave the castle, free to not clean bloody smocks off a bloody table, free to marry whoever she wanted, free to do what she wanted and go wherever she desired…he knew that wasn't true. From the moment she was born she'd been trapped. That was why she'd gone with him in the first place, because he gave her a choice. She'd told him that before.

"Haven't I?!" she demanded.

He closed his eyes at the question, that same look that he'd given her the night they'd been reunited years ago and he knew he'd said something wrong. "That wasn't…I didn't mean it like that…I just meant…"

"That I'm incapable of understanding something unless I've lived it, incapable of sympathy or empathy."

"Oh, come on, Belle, you know that's not what I meant…"

"Then what did you mean?" she questioned, crossing her arms over her chest and realizing that at some point they'd both finally lowered their voices. This conversation, it wasn't exactly going according to plan, but somehow she felt progress was getting made. Slowly, but surely they were going somewhere she just needed to know where!

"You always told me you trusted me, you told me night and day that I was the only one you trusted, the only one you were comfortable with-"

"That was all true."

"But then you act like…"

She lost her words. She wasn't sure she could bare to think the only ones that came to mind because they were spoken by her when she was under a curse. But did that make them any less authentic?

"I know you love me," she finally muttered. "But you also love your magic just as much, and it feels as though it's more. I'm your wife, and you made me the mistress, the other woman, constantly competing for your attention, watching as you devoted yourself to someone else and gave me nothing but lavish promises you never intended to keep. When you were with me, you were really thinking of protecting your magic and I never really knew if you were ever _with_ me."

The answer was no. Curse or not the words, the thoughts and feelings, they were all her own. And the moment they were gone she felt as though someone had let the air out of the room, but the pressure she felt against her chest did ease. Her heart still felt as though it was in a vice though. And when she risked another glance up at him she felt it squeeze again as she cast her gaze away. He hadn't said anything. He didn't offer an apology. It was probably the best thing to do. After all, he'd apologized before and so she wasn't sure she'd ever believe him if he tried to now. But he was crying. It was the only thing that proved to her the words she said hadn't gone unheard. Tears were…an appropriate reaction. Until he dared to move. She didn't watch, she was too busy glancing at a single point in the reflection against the dark shop windows to really pay attention. But she heard him move, the sound of footsteps and a cane across the floor, the feel of the floorboards shifting beneath her own shoes, and the shudder of the glass case against her back as he joined her there

They stood there together for minutes though in the empty space for it felt like hours. She didn't know what he expected of her and frankly she couldn't think of anything more to say. She was waiting on him, to make the next move or to run, to say or do anything…

"What do you need to know?" his small voice asked an eternity later.

It wasn't exactly a question that she expected. He'd never really invited her to ask him questions before, probably because he'd never intended to be honest with her before. She knew it was an odd predicament. He hadn't wanted to lie to her, but his desire to keep the truth from her outweighed the desire to be honest. So his solution was to never tell her anything without realizing that he could lie simply by omission. But now…

Need not want. He wanted to know what she needed to know. She wasn't sure she needed to know anything. She'd heard it all before, but from different parties. The apprentice, Killian…Anna.

She swallowed the knot in her throat down and dared to ask what she needed to hear from him. "Did you keep Anna from me?" she asked softly, her voice hoarse from holding back her tears.

He was silent again. So silent it was deafening. Then…

"Yes," he finally whispered. "When we first saw her I kept you from seeing her, speaking to her. Later I had a role in her departure, though it truly had been an emergency then. Fate intervened on my behalf and helped to keep the pair of you separate so that you wouldn't learn what I'd been doing, so that you wouldn't learn that I knew about the Sorcerer's Hat."

She managed to stay right where she was again though she wasn't sure if it was her determination or just that she had so many emotions working through her that she wasn't physically able to move away from him. Besides, even if she could move, she wasn't sure she wanted to.

"Whether or not it was an emergency you took something from me I can't ever get back."

"I know. I knew it even then. I did a selfish thing to keep you with me and in the end, I lost you anyway."

"And found your way back working with Ursula and Cruella. Women who kidnapped me, who tried to kill me, women you knew I despise! It would be like me deciding to work against you with Zelena or…"

"Hook."

She glanced over because the tone of his voice changed so drastically. He didn't sound sorry, or sympathetic, he was making an accusation now.

"That's different," she stated firmly.

"How?" he questioned back. "I did what I had to do to get the job done. How is that any different than you working with Hook to free the fairies?"

"It's different because Killian and I weren't working to completely turn our reality upside-down, we were working on fixing your mistake."

"Which you only did with my help."

"What are you talking about?" she demanded because he was beginning to sound ridiculous. He'd been far away, over the town line, the only thing he'd done was help the fairies into the hat not out.

"You never would have translated the ritual you found as fast as you did if I haven't given it to you. It's a dead language, you'd have cracked it eventually, but I decided to help you along."

"You…" The translation? He translated it? Ridiculous, he didn't translate it, it was…the professor, the one she'd never met and couldn't remember sending an e-mail to. The one that called her Mrs. Gold. "You were the Oxford Professor?! You?!"

"And some others you met. Storybrooke Public Library…you didn't exactly make yourself hard to find. You needed help, a little nudge…I was happy to provide that in any capacity."

"To get yourself and those witches into Storybrooke! To trick me!"

"I needed them to get me back. Afterward it was done to make sure you were safe," he insisted quickly. "My method might have been wrong, but all I wanted was to have a happy ending with you in a new world, a new book, where we'd have a fresh start. And if I was going to do a reset then I didn't exactly have to worry about what I did to get it."

"That's a terrible thing to do."

"I know. Now…now I can see it was the wrong thing to do because I'd rather have this."

"What? A pawnshop?"

"You! These arguments and fights, the troubles we force each other into and get each other out of, the way we keep saving each other without fail. I'd rather have this argument with you a hundred times over than what was crafted in the book because it wasn't real. This is real. And now that I'm not the Dark One, now that I've got no magic and no power, I want the opportunity to try harder, to prove that I do choose you, to prove that I am worthy of you instead of simply dismissing it."

She couldn't think of a single thing to add in the face of that declaration. It was a lot to swallow, but for the most part…he'd said everything right! Everything that she'd liked about their relationship before the town line, everything she hadn't wanted to change, even the arguments they had…he liked it all too. But the problem wasn't in his words. He could be the sweetest talker in the world, it was his actions that sometimes fell short. She liked his words, she wasn't sure she believed his promises.

Again she swallowed and though her skin itched to take a step away and a step closer at the same time she managed to stay right where she was. "It's hard for me to believe all that," she confessed in a small voice.

He looked at the floor and nodded. "It wasn't something that I expected you to believe all at once. I can't prove anything to you now, but that's the thing about time, if we keep moving forward, start fresh, try to rebuild what we had…then maybe one day with time you can believe it again."

Take time. Keep moving forward. Start fresh. Rebuild. Her heart began to race because she felt like he was proposing all over again. It sounded like he was asking her to take yet another leap of faith and welcome him back into her arms as her husband again and…now she knew the truth of their original proposal. She'd known it was crazy and spontaneous and that he was the Dark One, but she'd believed he'd been fine and they'd be fine and…

Oh, she was standing to close to him again. Her heart was racing faster than she knew it could and she pushed herself away putting a safe amount of distance between them. He couldn't expect her to just accept this, could he? After everything he'd put her through?!

"I'm not sure-"

She was interrupted by the sound of the shop's chime ringing against the door and had an odd feeling of relief even knowing that it could be Emma. Any kind of interruption was welcome.

But instead, it was Mary Margaret. She stood in the shop and looked between the two of them before her face contorted in confusion, like she wasn't sure whether she should run or say what she had to.

Stay. She didn't have the words necessary to tell the woman how much she needed her to stay and continue to interrupt them, to not leave the two of them alone again. "Mary Margaret what…what is it?" she finally asked wiping her eyes.

With the provided invitation Mary Margaret stepped forward and took a breath. "We need your help. It's an emergency!"

* * *

 **And there you are, the conversation I think we were all dying for them to have and they never did. Never fear, I certainly wasn't going to let them off as easy as the show did! I like this conversation, I think it's a good fight for them, they both kind of call each other out in good and bad ways and begin to catch up. So, this moves us on to our next big question. How do we explain the well scene? Two ways. First, when it comes to Rumple, we create conversations like this, conversations that should make it obvious that maybe Rumple pushing Belle to make a decision right then and there was not the best choice in the world. Second, when it comes to Belle, we back those conversations up with thoughts, thoughts and actions and inability; basically, with Belle, what I'm really trying to get you to do is listen to her own inner dialogue and think to yourself "this really isn't a woman that should be in a relationship right now." If she had her memories from Camelot things would be different. But she doesn't. And the Belle those memories leaves us with is someone who really is unsure of herself and let's face it, if you had a friend as confused and hurt as Belle was right now would you really say "you know what you need right now, a boyfriend to define you!" Of course not. You'd say that they needed to take some time to figure themselves out first and then they could consider what comes next. And so on that note, we are off to make this well thing a reality. Can I do it?! I suppose we'll see.**

 **Big thank yous to Fox24, Teresa Martin, Grace5231973, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews that you left me. I can't tell you how excited I am to hear what you have to say about this chapter, I've only been waiting to publish it ever since I realized that the show was not going to give this conversation to us. So let me know what you think, I can't wait to hear it! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	41. Unexpected, Urgent News

"What's the emergency?"

"What isn't the emergency? Arthur lied to us, Merlin is probably dead because Emma killed him, and Zelena is suddenly ready to deliver a baby."

"Wait…slow down…Zelena's ready to deliver her baby…she's only a few weeks pregnant, isn't she?!"

"Just shy of three months," Mary Margaret confirmed. "But Regina just got the call to see her and left me a message that she is full term!

Just shy of three months and yet full term? Had she heard her right? It wasn't anything Zelena could do she was supposed to be without magic!

"Zelena's full term? How did she manage that?!"

"She didn't," Mary Margaret explained. "She's worn the bracelet for as long as we can remember, someone else is doing it to her. It must be Emma."

"But…" Emma accelerated Zelena's pregnancy so she was ready to deliver. That sounded like a trick Zelena would pull why on Earth would Emma want to do it? And did she mention something about Merlin?! "But why would Emma do that and…what did you mean Merlin is probably dead? I thought we found him in Camelot?"

"We must have, Emma said we did but…I don't think things happened the way that we think they did. Everything is so confusing, it's hard to put together and make sense of it all."

She didn't say. As far as she was concerned Mary Margaret may as well as be speaking gibberish! "So start from the beginning," she insisted. "What happened after I left this morning to help Rumple?"

Almost as if he'd appeared out of thin air she saw Mary Margaret's eyes wander over to a location behind her back where she could sense Rumpelstiltskin standing. "I'm sorry. I got your message but didn't realize…you did it. You freed him."

"She did," Rumple confirmed. "But I'm afraid it was at a great cost. Emma has Excalibur. She had me pull it out of a stone in exchange for Merida's heart and some information about her brothers."

"Merida?" Mary Margaret questioned with confusion. "Who's Merida?"

She shook her head, because the truth was that Merida, unfortunately, wasn't really important at the moment. She'd been a prisoner, and now she was free, she was irrelevant to the "emergency" at hand which was the fact that Emma now had the two halves of the sword and whatever it was that Mary Margaret was trying to tell them!

"Merida doesn't matter, not anymore," she clarified. "She's a long story that can be told another time, what does matter is that Emma now has both halves of the sword, which according to Arthur has the power to eliminate all light magic."

"We can't trust that," Mary Margaret interrupted. "We can't trust him-Arthur, not anymore."

She felt like she was going to scream. These conversations, she hated them because she felt like they just went around in circles and in the end she never learned anything! What was going on?! "What happened?" she demanded again. "Before I left everyone was certain that Arthur was the key to everything!"

"Because he made it appear that way, he's been working against us the entire time," she explained. "The Crimson Crown, the spell Regina was working on, she finished it. David collected Arthur just as planned. When he got there he sent the rest of us outside, saying that when Merlin addressed him he was always alone so he wanted to be alone again to improve our chances-"

"But it didn't work?"

"By his own design. It was only later that we found The Crimson Crown again, not in the potion but in the pyre beneath."

She blanched at the news. Now that was something that certainly didn't make any sense. "He tried to burn it?!"

"Tried…didn't succeed. And he won't tell us why. We can't trust Arthur anymore, or anything that he's told us."

"Where is he?"

"The jail. He tried to get away when David went to question him but Hook brought him in."

"And Guinevere?"

"Other than the fact that she's Arthur's wife we have no evidence to suggest that she's involved. Why? Do you suspect something?"

She shook her head. "No, it's just…something about her seemed…off last night. But it was the first time I remember meeting her and if she's like that all the time-"

"It might not be what you think it is." She glanced behind her to where Rumple was propped up against his cane listening to their conversation. After so long without him it was easy to forget that he was there and that she wasn't the only one in town with a wealth of magical knowledge.

"How can you tell that it would be anything out of the ordinary?" she questioned.

He opened his mouth but paused for just long enough to tell her she might not like the answer she was about to get. "The Gauntlet…I had to get it somewhere," he finally muttered.

The Gauntlet. The one he'd gotten from a trip to Camelot! Was he saying…

"You took the Gauntlet from Queen Guinevere?"

"I never take anything," he corrected. "I made a deal for it. She was after the dagger, hoping to find it so that Arthur could reforge Excalibur, he was obsessed with making the sword whole again."

"But of course you couldn't give her the dagger," Mary Margaret stated from behind her.

"No, but I did give her a special powder that could make broken things seem whole again, so Guinevere could trick her husband into thinking Excalibur was whole and get her love back."

That's what he'd been doing all those years ago? That's the story about Camelot that he hadn't told her? The one that had worked out well for him but not so great for Camelot…that's what happened?! He'd tried to force a married couple back together with magic and trickery. "That's awful," she heard herself comment in a small voice. As someone who had nearly been kept in a marriage only through magic and trickery, she knew how insulting and terrible it really was. She just hadn't known until now that it wasn't a new trick for him.

But it also wasn't him anymore. That was the Darkness, something he'd done when he was infected with a terrible curse. It was harder to separate the two than she'd ever thought. No wonder trust wasn't coming easy.

"Well, if it's any consolation obviously she didn't use it; otherwise, Arthur wouldn't still be obsessed with the dagger and Excalibur, but if Guinevere is still by his side…"

"Then Arthur found the powder and used it on her," Mary Margaret inserted behind her. "She's under a spell!"

"Will she know something? If we break it can she give us the answers that Arthur can't?!" she questioned quickly, trying to find the silver lining.

"We don't need her," Mary Margaret stated making her turn back. "Arthur failed at burning the Crimson Crown and Regina remembered that there was another person in Storybrooke chosen by Merlin who could communicate with him. Henry is the Author…he managed to make contact, if you want to call it that."

She felt numb, like her head was spinning so fast that it had separated from her body. Sometimes it astounded her just how much could happen in little more than twelve hours. Was anything the way that she remembered it? "What do you mean 'if you want to call it communication'?" she questioned.

"It wasn't Merlin," Mary Margaret answered, "it was a message of some kind, a warning. He couldn't say much because Emma had found him, but he said that someone named Nimue could help."

More spinning, more numbness, more…noise? They all jumped at the sound of a cell phone that for once wasn't her own. Mary Margaret dug inside of one of her pockets, looked it over, then looked up at the pair of them. "It's Regina," she explained with fear in her eyes before turning her back on them. "Regina, she hasn't delivered yet has she?"

There was talking on the other end, she didn't try to listen to the conversation. She was still reeling. Nimue?! Her again? Now?! She turned back to Rumple, the only one available to talk to her at the moment. "Nimue can't help," she stated quietly. "She's probably dead."

He furrowed his brow and gave her an odd look. "You know who Nimue is?!" he questioned. Did that mean…did _he_ know who Nimue was?

She opened her mouth but ended up just shaking her head and walking over to the place she'd kept the journal as Mary Margaret continued to talk on the phone. This was why she much preferred when they all got along and worked together. They'd accomplish so much more if they could all only learn to deal with one another. Herself included. But since Mary Margaret was busy and clueless she figured she may as well show Rumple what she knew and see if he had any information that could help as well.

"Come with me," she whispered leading him into the back room. He followed and she dug out the back room for what she'd been working on these past few weeks. "This is a journal that came over with us from Camelot. I've been translating and Nimue..." she stated handing some pages of translation to him. "She's all over this writing, Merlin's I've come to assume. She's his lover but she's gone. I can't be sure how, only that the Dark One was involved and took her away in some way, either kidnapped her or killed her. He was never clear and…I got busy with you, I never finished the translation. If I'd known she was important-"

"She's more than important," he pointed out as he looked her and her pages over with wide eyes full of surprise. "You have no idea who she is, do you?"

"And you do?" she questioned. She was having trouble keeping up. He knew Nimue? How?!

Rumpelstiltskin took a breath and looked between her and the papers before setting them aside. "Nimue isn't dead, not the way that you think she is. She wasn't kidnapped by the Dark One she was the Dark One. The first Dark One."

She had no words. Nimue wasn't taken by the Dark One…she was the first Dark One?! She was speechless! But…with the final piece of information everything seemed to fit into place. The Dark One she'd read about, Merlin's passages always had seemed a bit conflicted. While he'd wanted to destroy the Darkness he'd never mentioned wanting to destroy the Dark One…not if Nimue could be saved.

She was an idiot. How could she not have seen?! He'd put the same barriers up to protect himself that she had to protect herself, separating Rumple and the Darkness…and assuming that the Dark One was a man hadn't helped. Would that have been obvious to her if she'd finished the translation? What would she have learned then?

"But then…if Nimue was the Dark One why would Merlin say she could help? Wouldn't she be on Emma's side?" she questioned finally breaking the silence. Something wasn't adding up.

"If Merlin believed the best in Nimue, the way you once believed in me, maybe he thought that appealing to Nimue was worth a shot when he created the message, but it's not now," Rumple snorted. "We've both seen for ourselves. She's too far gone for anything like that."

"And she has Excalibur now…it's only a matter of time before she reforges them. We can't stop her from doing that," she realized.

There was movement behind her and she glanced behind her to find Mary Margaret standing in the threshold to the back room, phone in hand, eye wider than she knew they could be.

"What did Regina say?"

Mary Margaret shook her head. "We're running out of time. Zelena is in labor, they're trying to make space for her to deliver in the maternity ward, safely, but there is no telling what's going to happen, especially if Emma makes the sword and dagger one again. We have to stay a step ahead of her," Mary Margaret breathed looking between her and Rumpelstiltskin. "The spell to get rid of light magic…do you know it? Do you know where we can find it?!"

Rumple stared at her in silence before he finally nodded. "I can do you one better than tell you. I can show you."

* * *

 **This was one of those chapters that I felt was necessary. This is why it sucks when they don't actually work together. You end up with one group knowing one set of important information, another group knowing a second set of important information, and then they waste time having to catch each other up. Honestly, ya'll are going to have to deal with each other and you should know that by now, be adults and deal with it! (Sorry, little rant.)**

 **Thank you, TracyJean, Grace5231973, Fox24, Teresa Martin, Rumbellefan, and Ladybugsmomma, for the very interesting reviews ya'll left me. Ya'll constantly challenge me to get this thing as close to right as possible. It's also kind of fascinating to see this through so many different eyes and opinions. I love it! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	42. No Research Required

Though she felt like time was of the essence the three of them piled into Rumple's car and he began to drive. At first she was afraid of where he was going, the direction they were heading was their home. It wasn't possible, it just wasn't possible, that once again the answers to everything were in his basement books!

But her fears ebbed the moment that they passed the turn to take them home. They weren't going home. So where were they going exactly. Her stomach knotted the moment they pulled into the darkened cemetery, the same place they'd pulled in over a year ago when they'd realized Pan was on the loose, only now things were so different. Neal had been here last time. Now…she supposed he still was here. His body, his grave, were far from this place, but she couldn't help but glance in that direction through the haze and locate the stone in the distance she knew was his. She didn't like being here and her eyes filled with tears right away. He'd been oddly silent today.

She sniffled and did her best to subtly wipe her eyes. "Why are we here?" she questioned.

"Your voice was the strongest I heard while I was in the coma, but it wasn't the only voice I heard," he stated as they began to stroll across the yard. "Regina stopped by frequently when you weren't there. She spoke to me about her research and…let's call them frustrations. She always has been one for talking out her problems. She's been working on the other books that came with you from Camelot. When you do research you go to the library, Regina on the other hand retreats somewhere far more sinister."

"He's right," Mary Margaret confirmed. "She's been here all week working with them."

"Here" as it turned out was not just the cemetery. It was a place inside the cemetery. Her family's Mausoleum. She should have known that was where they were going though if she was honest she never would have come up with that on her own. She'd long since forgotten about his place. Probably for good reason.

Down the steps the three of them trotted. It wasn't the first trip she'd ever taken to the Mausoleum, but it was the first time she'd ever been inside. She tried to ignore the cobwebs and spiders, as well as the coffins, though that was significantly harder than the insects. "Cora" and "Henry" were the names printed on them. Regina's parents. Henry. She'd named her son after her father. That wasn't unusual, but somehow seeing what remained of the former Henry made her shiver before she moved on.

At the bottom of the hidden stairs, she found a large room, big enough to be two. Private, dark, thick walls, quiet…no wonder Regina had been drawn to it during the curse. It was the perfect place to hide. And practice magic.

In the next room, there was evidence of a pyre beneath a cauldron filled with something that smelled just awful now that the magic was used up.

"Those are the books that came with us from Camelot." She looked up at Mary Margaret's voice to see Rumple on the other side of the room looking at the piles of books that Regina had laid out around the room. "Well, all but the one Belle took. Regina thought some of them came from Merlin."

"Most of them do," he whispered moving a stack aside and picking up a very particular one that had been buried beneath them. "This one for example is one of his notebooks and I believe you will find these pages of great interest," he insisted finding a specific page and offering it to her.

She reached out and took the book from him. The language was old but not yet dead, different from the journal she'd been deciphering. However, the handwriting was the same. If Merlin had written the journal, then there was no doubt that he'd written this. And it was evident why.

The paragraph at the top of the page didn't talk about the destruction of Light Magic, it talked about the destruction of Dark Magic, just like Arthur had said. His motives might have been questionable, but he'd been telling the truth about this!

"This is all about getting rid of Dark Magic," she spoke into the room.

"Read on," he encouraged.

Her eyes skimmed over the paragraphs and small pictures before her until-

 _"There are always two sides to the same coin. If Darkness can be eliminated, then it must also be possible to eliminate Light as well. The following spell is untested, but I believe it would take Dark Magic from this world. Tempting as it is to use this spell and vanquish evil from the world there is a word of caution to this spell. Where there is Light, there is always Darkness and where there is Darkness it is always possible for Light to shine through. Without the balance of Light and Dark, Good and Bad, it is impossible to tell what will become of the world we live in. Neither of these spells should ever be attempted."_

She would never understand this, she'd never understand why Sorcerer's both Light and Dark wrote things like this down that they knew should never be attempted. Wasn't it better to just keep the knowledge in their heads and allow themselves to die with it instead of tempting others?!

She glanced up out of the book and right into Rumpelstiltskin's eyes. He was watching her. Watching her as she read this book, this page…which had taken him no time at all to find. This was different than when she did research and happened upon the answer. That was determination, luck, and intelligence. This had been precision.

"How did you know this would be here?" she questioned.

"What? Did you find it? What's it say?" Mary Margaret questioned coming to stand beside her and look at what she'd found. She didn't respond, just let her read for herself as she kept her eyes on her husband. More secrets?

"I've always known," he finally confessed in a small voice. She didn't ask what he meant, just let her eyes demand the answers for her. "It's always been in my head but always just out of my grasp, and frankly, it's never really been a concern," he finally went on. "When you are the Dark One you inherit the voice and knowledge of most Dark Ones in your head, they whisper constantly, goad you on, try their hardest in death to get you to do what they couldn't in life: destroy Light Magic. They've gleaned much information about the destruction of Light Magic in their time, knowledge that I then inherited. I've always known the spell was in Camelot, in this book, this page, that knowledge was acquired before my time but I never had the interest in it because of Bae. My intentions to find my son kept me thinking that I could figure it out after I had him back but by then the spell book was in another realm and…I suppose I just never had a sufficient enough desire to accomplish that task."

She tried to ignore the look that he was giving her, she tried not to think that what he was saying was that she kept him happy enough not to do what the Dark One's told him to. She wanted to believe that. But she couldn't let herself get her hopes up over him. Not considering where they were in their relationship or lack thereof, and not considering everything that was happening now in Storybrooke.

What he'd said was frightening. Dark One's goading their hosts on. It would have sounded like a crazy excuse if he hadn't just mentioned it a few hours ago outside of this conversation. Though then the tone had been slightly different. "You said that because Emma heard voices it was a good thing."

"I said it meant she was conflicted, and she is. But trust me those voices aren't helping her, they aren't telling her to abandon this venture, they're pushing her to do it. The conflict comes from the opposing side…us."

"How can you be sure Emma hears the voices?" Mary Margaret asked beside her, looking suddenly skeptical and interested in their conversation. "They're in her head. Can you hear them too because you were a Dark One?!"

"No," he answered quietly. "Not anymore. But when I was with Emma there were times her speech stopped, she was distracted by something in a corner or over her shoulder, something that wasn't there, sometimes she even responded. When I first became the Dark One Zoso, the Dark One before me, would appear in the same way, as a guide to the magic I'd inherited. I embraced and used my magic willingly and gratefully in the first days, I rarely had encounters with Zoso, but he appeared again after Bae went through the portal and my purpose shifted to finding my son. The voices haunted me for years until I learned to shut them out and ignore them all together. They couldn't keep me away from Bae. They returned months ago, after he died but it wasn't Neal that kept me from listening to them. It was you, Belle. It was one of the reasons I hoped to break free from the dagger. I hoped that I might still retain my power but be free of the voices."

She could tell from his tone that he hoped she'd be impressed by all this. She wasn't. Not in the least was she impressed. Yes, she could remember him telling her in whispers during the night that he liked having her around because she quieted the voices. But she could also remember not understanding what that meant exactly! As far as she'd been concerned, it had been his own mind, the voices that wouldn't stop talking to him from hundreds of year's worth of living. Not previous Dark Ones. She hadn't known any better then! But she should have. She should have known before this. He should have told her long ago! And hoping that she would be impressed with the idea that she'd kept him away from trying to destroy Light Magic while he'd gone off and tried to destroy the town so he could keep his magic…she was not amused in the way he thought she was.

"You-"

"Not now, we don't have time for arguing. Can you read this?" Mary Margaret questioned glancing back at the book in her arms. Yes. There would be time to argue about this later. Now wasn't the time. Not when apparently she could read what Mary Margaret couldn't.

The spells to remove Dark Magic and Light Magic were very similar and frighteningly simple. A potion was made to pour over the sword, and that was more or less it! There was a slight difference in the herbs needed to make the potion, it required a bit of blood from a powerful practitioner of Light or Dark magic, depending on which was the target, and…there was the biggest difference. Getting rid of Dark magic required a sacrifice of wickedness, the still beating heart of a powerful Sorcerer of Dark Magic. Getting rid of Light magic required a sacrifice of innocence. The screams of a baby. Newborn babies worked best, she could remember that from when she'd been researching why Zelena would want a child for whatever she was working on.

If Emma had sped up Zelena's pregnancy and she was ready to deliver…then she was about to have a very newborn baby at her fingertips!

"We need to get to the hospital," she murmured. "Now!"

* * *

 **It wasn't really this scene that bothered me so much as the scene that comes afterward. Actually, 5x08 just bothered me in general, but you already get that it was because of the timeline. I mean really...why not just have Belle change outfits once?! Magic could be slow to work, Emma could have begun to advance Zelena's pregnancy, and the spell take twenty-four hours to work. That would have been more believable than Belle all of a sudden running into the hospital room with a spell book that magically has the right answer! I saw that scene and was instantly upset. When did she have time to research all that today A &E?! Most of the day she was hunting Rumple, most of the night she was running from a bear, and then she was back in the pawn shop preparing for Emma to strike! Yeah, but no I'm sure she just managed to track down the right answer in the knick of time or...or I could be sensible and let Rumple have the answers and take Belle out of the picture. I hope this is a believable alternative to that theory that actually manages to keep canon. **

**Thank you, Grace5231973, Ladybugsmomma, Fox24, Teresa Martin, and Matty, for your comments on the previous chapter. As always they are very much appreciated and I'm happy that most are...let's say content with where this is going. So far no one is flaming mad, so that's a good thing. Nothing about where this plot line goes will be happy, but I'm content that you are content to say it is logical. More of that on the way, but first we've got another baby to bring into this world. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	43. A Magical Balancing Act

"What?! Why?! What does it say?!" Mary Margaret demanded as she closed her finger on the book and spun around to leave. In the face of Emma possibly taking a newborn baby for its cries, suddenly the fact that they were in the cemetery didn't bother her as much.

"I'll explain on the way, Rumple can you drive?!"

The pair followed her out, Mary Margaret in a hurry, Rumpelstiltskin as fast as she suspected that he could walk with his limp. They went right to the car, Mary Margaret huddled into the back seat while she turned in the front and explained to Mary Margaret what she'd just read, what the spell said they had to do.

"So Emma won't actually kill the baby, she just needs her cries," Mary Margaret clarified looking almost relieved. She obviously didn't understand.

"But if she gets the cries then what will happen will be much worse. No more Light Magic…it's hard to say what the world would look like without the proper balance of Light and Dark, it would be…"

"Chaos," Rumple breathed beside her.

She opened her mouth to disagree, to say that it wouldn't be that way if Dark Magic was eliminated, only if light magic was! But then she pictured a world of too much Light and not enough Dark to balance it out what greeted her was a memory of Rumpelstiltskin before her in a suit of armor and Isaac in their home in the Enchanted Forest. She wanted to disagree, but thinking back on that and how wrong it felt at just the memory she nodded her head.

"Chaos," she agreed quietly.

"Alright," Mary Margaret breathed. "I'll call Regina, figure out where they are at and what they're doing. Zelena is going to need protection, more than just a few nurses in the maternity ward."

She shook her head as she remembered rushing to the hospital and feeling the deadline fast approaching knowing they could do nothing to stop it. It wasn't Mary Margaret that had needed protection. She'd been safe because she'd been the precious vessel and afterward it still wasn't Mary Margaret that was in danger because she'd never really been the target, just the incubator.

"It's not Zelena that needs protection," she breathed. "Just the baby."

"Regina against Emma…" Mary Margaret echoed in the back, her eyes going wide as if she was in shock. "Emma was the Savior she couldn't protect Neal from Zelena, how is Regina supposed to protect this baby from Emma. This time she's the Savior and the Dark One."

She…genuinely had no answers for her. It seemed like a riddle without an answer and Rumpelstiltskin-

Next to her his face remained stoic, the only sign that he was even paying attention was the glance that he cast into the rearview mirror. Maybe it was helpless…

"It wasn't Emma that defeated Zelena…"

His voice was low. She felt her jaw drop, but no words came out which was ironic because suddenly she felt like she had a million questions. Questions she'd never dared to ask and questions she'd never thought to ask because she never thought she had to. The day they went off to defeat Zelena…Emma had done it! She didn't know anything else about it because she hadn't wanted to ask him, she hadn't wanted to resurrect his demons, and they'd been so focused on the prospect of getting married that she'd never seen a reason to ask what had actually happened in the barn. But now…

Emma hadn't defeated Zelena? That wasn't possible. They had to get the necklace off of her and Glinda had told Mary Margaret and David that it had to be someone with Light Magic, the Savior…Emma. Wasn't it?

"What did you say?" Mary Margaret asked from the backseat, suddenly sitting forward. Yes, it was so long ago, and she felt like a lifetime had passed, but Mary Margaret hadn't been there either! She'd been recovering from the birth and the trauma of the kidnapping. Last time she'd checked it had been Henry with her while David, Emma, Killian, Regina, and Robin Hood had gone to save the baby. Apparently, she wasn't the only one not to ask what came next either.

"Emma wasn't the one that defeated Zelena," Rumple spoke up. "Regina did."

Regina? Regina had defeated Zelena?! Not Emma?! "How is that possible? Nothing but light magic could separate Zelena from her necklace."

"And that day Regina had it," Rumple pressed without offering an explanation.

She didn't know how that was possible! She knew that Regina wasn't exactly Dark anymore, she hadn't been able to work the Apprentice's wand to get them to Camelot weeks ago. But Light Magic?! Strong Light Magic from Regina…even with all the progress she'd made at that time, it seemed impossible!

But for the moment…

Mary Margaret was one of the strongest individuals that she'd ever met. But she had a weakness when it came to her children. Where they were concerned, their souls, their goodness…she was one of the most sensitive individuals. She was scared for Robin's child, clearly, but also for her own child. If Emma succeeded and hurt the baby…she could see that as far as Mary Margaret was concerned, there would be no turning back, even if the spell failed. And there was no reason it would fail.

Regina could use Light Magic. If she could then she was going to need as much support as possible and she'd seen enough over the years to know that Mary Margaret would be essential to that. But in order to believe she didn't need questioning and confusion, she needed reassurance and confidence. She could worry about how Regina had accomplished using Light Magic and the status of their relationship later. For now, she had to worry about her being able to use that kind of magic.

"Regina stopped Zelena, Mary Margaret, she has Light Magic! She'll stop Emma she won't touch that child!" she assured her. "We'll tell them what we know, we'll prepare Regina, she won't let anything happen to Robin's child. You know that."

Mary Margaret finally picked up her head, looked her in the eye, and took a breath. A moment later she could see the sadness and shock wear off. She had her spine back again, determination and fight returned to her face in the passing light, and her chin lifted before she nodded. "We can't let Emma do this," she breathed with determination.

"We won't," she promised before turning back in her seat and closing her mouth because staring straight ahead in silence with the book in her lap was easier than talking.

Mary Margaret talked. Henry called, asked if she knew what was going on, she listened as she explained that they were on their way to the hospital with important information. She put Henry on speaker phone and they all listened as he informed them that everyone was already there, and Zelena was getting settled.

Settled couldn't be good. The last thing they needed was for Zelena's pregnancy to be settled before she delivered. And though his face remained the same, she could feel from the sudden push of gas that he gave the car that Rumple understood it was bad too. The moment that they pulled into the parking lot he didn't park, merely pulled right up to the door and dropped them off. She and Mary Margaret got out of the car and just like last time they found the entrance guarded by Merry Men she hadn't seen in weeks armed with bows and arrows. It was like she'd just walked back in time and, just like it had then, her heart suddenly began to pound furiously in her chest. How had she not realized just how bad this was until this very moment?

"Maternity Ward is this way!" Mary Margaret said pointing down a hallway she remembered. Yes. The maternity ward, that would be where Zelena would be if she was about to give birth.

It wasn't difficult to find the room, it was a small hospital, and all they had to do was follow the tension in the air. Finally, they burst into a room, and she found Regina, Robin Hood, and Doctor Whale with a hair color she was certain he didn't have when she'd run into him a few months ago in Regina's house. But Doctor Whale's hair wasn't even the most shocking thing in the room. It was Zelena, laying on the hospital bed. She knew that she'd heard it before, but that was nothing like seeing it. Three weeks ago they'd arrived back in Storybrooke and Zelena hadn't been showing at all, now she lay on the bed with her arms around her stomach…clearly full term.

Emma really had sped up the pregnancy. Mary Margaret had told the truth. Not that she ever thought she was lying! But still...it was remarkable. And she couldn't waste time on it now. There was too much happening, too much going on, and as much as she despised Zelena she absolutely couldn't risk Robin's child!

"Everybody get ready!" Mary Margaret burst out, breaking the stare that she'd been holding on Zelena's tummy. "We have to protect that baby from Emma!"

"She's here?!" Robin demanded.

"She will be soon, and we found that spell to destroy light magic in Merlin's spell book!" she explained opening it up.

"The only thing she needs other than Excalibur is…"

"Cries of a newborn child," Regina finished for Mary Margaret as she looked the page over.

"Well she's not taking this baby, not while I'm still alive," Robin vowed. But that was just the problem. Emma had been willing to kill her only a couple of hours ago, and she was pretty sure that Robin was about on the same terms with her that she had been. Emma would kill him if she had to.

"Regina..." Zelena gasped, "take this cuff off so I can defend myself and my child. Please!" she begged so desperately that she nearly bought it until she realized what she'd said. Defend herself first and her child second. And she'd never exactly said who she was defending the child from. If Regina took that cuff off Zelena and the child might be gone before Emma got here.

"You are far from trustworthy!" Regina snapped quickly enough. "But worry not, I'll protect the baby. What happens to you, well…"

Zelena screamed again. Labor pains she imagined. She had vague memories of Mary Margaret experiencing them not long ago. "Just do something! Ah!" Zelena screamed again lying back on the bed.

"Stop being dramatic," Regina growled, though she had to admit that as she watched Zelena's face morph, she wasn't sure she was being dramatic.

"Regina!"

"Emma's not going to harm the baby!" she snapped. "We're going to protect her."

"And how do you intend to do that, you're the Evil Queen on a good day you can't stop the bloody Dark One! Ah! This baby wants out of me! Out! Get it out!"

Suddenly Regina took two steps forward, grabbed the railing and hovered over her sister. She took a step back at the motion and put the book under her arm. Regina's advance…it was too much like what she'd done to her years ago to invoke fear. "If you'll recall," she growled in a low tone, "I was good enough to protect one baby not long ago. I can do it again!"

* * *

 **Sometimes it fascinates me how fast time actually goes on this show. Yes, when you add it all up on the calendar, Neal is only about 5 months old. Which means that it wasn't even half a year ago that Zelena was the big bad of the century. And I kinda loved the moment of catch up. When I was writing this chapter, it dawned on me that neither Belle nor Mary Margaret would know how Regina saved the baby. I looked back through Moments and nothing, I reviewed a few episodes and transcripts and realized there really wasn't time for it to come up at least as far as Rumbelle goes. For Mary Margaret, I considered that it was, of course, possible she'd asked David, but when I thought more about it then it didn't really seem like something that was bound to come up between them. Mary Margaret would be happy to have her child back. What happened in between probably wouldn't have mattered and there really was no reason for it to come up elsewhere. It fit well here.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Ladybugsmomma, Fox24, and Teresa Martin, for the reviews on the last chapter. I'm always happy to hear that some frustrations I had with the show are not my own and that they bothered others just as much as they did me. Even if it's a little thing, I'm happy to hear I wasn't alone! Thanks for that! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	44. Infinite Finite Time

Zelena glared at Regina all the while her chest heaved and she looked like she might break into tears at any moment. She looked as though Regina had just taken her doll away or caught her hiding peas under her plate. Either way, Doctor Whale was unimpressed and forced them all out of the hospital room. Regina was the only one who refused. He challenged her, but Regina was already prepared for a fight. One glare and Doctor Whale appeared to rescind his insistence and in the end only Regina and Zelena remained in the room as she put a hospital gown on, though Robin, who had been nervously pacing outside the room, returned at the first moment that he could.

The world around her was suddenly a whirlwind of people, just like when Mary Margaret had done this and she wondered if this was what it was like whenever babies were born or if it was just their luck. Still, it was odd…and this hospital…she really did hate this hospital.

"Belle!" She looked up and was suddenly aware of how shallow and rapid her breathing had become, how fast her heart had been beating. It had been the beginnings of a panic attack, but now Rumpelstiltskin hobbled down the hall on the heels of-

"David!" Mary Margaret hollered as she moved over to her husband. "Arthur, did he give you anything?!" she demanded folding herself under his arm.

"Nothing," he muttered with regret, automatically rubbing her back.

She glanced at Rumpelstiltskin and folded her arms around herself before taking a step back. It would be so easy to do that, to throw herself into his arms as she had only a couple of hours ago. But somehow it just didn't seem appropriate and now that she was in her right mind and not overwhelmed with Emma and Merida and that horrible conversation they'd had in the shop…she averted her eyes instead to David. He was a much safer person to watch.

"I don't suppose Guinevere came by," she questioned.

"No, why? Do you think she might know anything?"

She shook her head. "She's under a spell."

"A spell?" David questioned.

"I'd say that with as widespread as it is it's become a curse," Rumpelstiltskin commented. "It's called the Sands of Avalon, if we get Guinevere and a bit of her hair we might be able to get Regina to manufacture a cure, but it would hardly be any help if Emma gets the child tonight."

And then he had to go and say something like that, remind her explicitly about Anna and the cure he'd withheld from her. That wasn't helping the urge to step away from him at all. But volunteering to help, even if he was only giving information to volunteer someone else…that did help his case. She just didn't know what to do! So she shuffled uselessly and pushed her hair back behind her ears. The spell book. She should go over the spell. Rumple might not have figured it out yet but just because an individual couldn't produce magic didn't mean they couldn't use it. And these were Merlin's books! Maybe there was a weakness they could exploit or a counter curse they could use, something to slow Emma down because-

Suddenly Regina appeared in the hallway looking stunned.

"Regina what happened?" Mary Margaret demanded.

She looked up at her with her wide eyes and then glanced back down the hallway that she'd just come from. She braced herself for the worst. A look like that…it wasn't too late was it? Emma hadn't-

"Nothing Zelena's just…she's ready to deliver and I thought…Whale said family only. Robin will watch over her until the baby is born. And that means that we…"

"We'll watch out for Emma," David inserted into the blank space. She continued to wait. For more instructions, for more words, for more questions…but Regina didn't offer any. She didn't even really look like herself. A few moments ago she'd been strong and insistent, and now she looked…she looked like a traumatized child. Was that really all she'd needed to say to them, all she'd had to say to update them? She felt like there was so much she wasn't saying. But she said nothing. Just turned and walked back down the hall.

That was…possibly the oddest encounter she'd ever had with Regina she'd ever had, and she'd had more than most. What was going on?!

"I'll go see if she needs to talk," Mary Margaret whispered before walking after her and leaving the three of them standing there in the middle of the hospital waiting room staring at each other. Her and David. Her and Rumple. David and Rumple.

"Gold," he nodded finally breaking the awkward silence. "Good to see you…up and about."

She didn't stay to hear what he said back to him just walked away from the awkward faceoff and sat down in a chair that she'd sat in months ago. She pulled the book she'd set aside into her lap and opened it up, examining it for the first time.

It was one of Merlin's spell books. That should have been obvious, but Rumple had handed it to her so simply she hadn't really thought to explore it until now. The spells were written in various languages, mostly old but still not old enough for her. The colors were different suggesting that the book had been added to over time, similar to the way the journal she'd been working on had been.

The journal…

She propped her head in her hands and rubbed her forehead. She tried not to think about the journal. But she couldn't help it. How would things be different if she'd finished translating the journal? If she'd set things aside and just focused! It was impossible to tell. It was foolish to worry about it! But she just couldn't stop. Was this her fault? Was there something that she could have done that would have-

"Anything interesting?" She flinched at the sound of his voice so close once again but covered it by taking a breath and sitting back in the chair. He took the seat next to her, their knees nearly brushing, and she simultaneously itched to inch closer and farther at the same time. She didn't even know this feeling could exist in this way! But it was driving her crazy. She didn't like living in this feeling of in between, of not knowing if she should turn and run away or move closer. Things just seemed to keep going in circles, and she hated it.

So instead she focused on what she knew. Anything interesting? In these books? Hadn't he proved that was a question for him? "I don't know, is there?" she questioned.

Rumpelstiltskin glanced at the book in her lap, then reached forward and took it from her. Her very fingers recoiled from his own. "I can't answer that," he whispered leafing through the pages with curiosity. "I've always known this page exists but beyond that…I have no idea what we might find in here. Or any of the other books Regina has. Maybe nothing…maybe everything."

She had no response. The silence stretched out between them infinitely. It was terribly ironic, all these weeks dreaming of what she'd say and do when he woke up and now she didn't know what she wanted to do or what needed to be said. Part of her wanted to know everything and anything about what had happened before, another part figured that it might be better left unsaid. She really hated living in this in-between!

"Can you think of anything?" she questioned turning to a safer topic of conversation. "Anything at all that might help us if Emma gets the child?"

He shook his head. "Emma gets the child, and our options nearly vanish."

"Nearly?" she questioned.

"Well, one thing you learn when you live long enough is that nothing is impossible. Whatever Emma's doing will take time, time has saved us in the past there is no reason we can't rely on it now."

No reason they shouldn't rely on time…there was every reason that they shouldn't rely on time. "Rumple, Emma has the upper hand! We need to have a plan, we need to figure out-"

The sound of heels clicking against tile drew her attention from the man sitting next to her. Regina and Mary Margaret. She knew that look. It wasn't good news.

"What is it?" she exclaimed setting the book aside and moving over to greet them. "What happened?"

"What happened is that Emma didn't want the baby…she wanted Zelena," Regina growled.

"You're joking," David inserted coming over to join their small group. "Why would she want Zelena?"

"I don't know, why would she want Zelena?" Regina question. At first, it appeared that she was looking straight at her, but then she noticed her gaze went over her shoulder and when she followed her eyes she saw Rumpelstiltskin standing behind her, both hands on his cane, watching their conversation. "You seem to always know everything, you have an explanation for all of this?"

He shook his head. "Spell calls for cries of an infant. She needed the child."

"She didn't take the baby," Regina snapped. Zelena gave birth, they got the baby cleaned up, and I barely had a minute to say 'hello' to her before Emma poofed herself in and took Zelena, gown and all."

Zelena. Not the baby. Her. Robin had a daughter. A daughter that wasn't going to be used to create a spell to wipe away light magic. But Zelena…

She felt her stomach turn beneath her skin…but couldn't understand why. Maybe because she had a hunch…a hunch that didn't make any sense to her.

"The spell to eliminate Dark Magic…" she breathed. "It required a sacrifice of Wickedness. It said a still beating heart..."

"That doesn't make any sense," Mary Margaret pointed out. "She's the Dark One, why would she want to destroy Dark Magic? Would she even exist? What is she thinking?"

"I have no idea…" Regina drawled. "You know what…I'm going to ask her myself."

"Wait…Regina! Regina wait!" Mary Margaret called as the Evil Queen moved around them and toward the door.

"No one threatens my sister but me!" Regina called over her shoulder.

"Regina wait!"

"She's our daughter!" Mary Margaret and David cried simultaneously before taking off after Regina.

"Wait!" she called stepping forward to join them. "Wait, I'll come with you!"

But suddenly there was pressure against her waist, holding her back, and a whisper in her ear. "Let them go," Rumpelstiltskin insisted. "There is nothing that you can do, if you go with them, you'll die."

"No-"

"Emma's already showed once tonight she thinks you are expendable, don't give her a reason to prove it!"

She opened her mouth to argue, but closed it and let her body slack against him as she gave up the fight. He was right. She didn't want it to be true, but it was. What happened with Merida tonight was still fresh in her mind. The moment she'd encountered her on the road, and she'd swallowed the potion she'd known exactly what she'd swallowed, the effects, the way the magic worked…but without preparation, she couldn't do anything. She felt like she was back in the Enchanted Forest again with Snow White and Prince Charming and the Evil Queen and…then there was her. She couldn't hold a sword, or wield unprepared magic, she couldn't use arrows, and she wasn't even close enough to Emma to use words. She had nothing.

And Rumpelstiltskin was right. There was a difference between being brave and going uselessly to her death.

She could be more useful alive.

* * *

 **Oh Belle, your thoughts are the thoughts of all the Rumbeller's in this chapter. Things do go in circles, it is frustrating, and we hate being in this place of in-between too! Oh, but on another note, see! I promised that scene where Belle realizes knowledge will only get her so far wasn't useless. It helps her here. It was something that I had to do because as I mentioned in MT, from this point on it just seems like they willy nilly throw whatever characters they want into a scene without really considering what they're doing. Belle was at the hospital, I couldn't think of why the guys would think she'd purposefully excuse herself from going after Emma, so I came up with a reason. Your welcome A &E. **

**Thank you, thank you, thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, Ladybugsmomma, and Teresa Martin for the reviews! I'm so happy with the reception I could burst. I appreciate that you stick with me through this, even if the storyline is not the most fun in the world! Thank you so much! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	45. Hiding In Plain Sight

If she couldn't go and figure out what Emma wanted with Zelena, then she was determined to help in the only way that she knew how: searching through books.

She let Rumpelstiltskin take her home, the home she'd once called theirs. There was so much that she wanted to say, so much to do and think about with both of them under this same roof again. But all she could manage was to tell him that she'd be in the basement.

"Belle!"

She turned back at his summons, not out of desire, she was past desire by now, and the feeling that had returned to her in the space between the hospital and here was the itch to be further away not closer. No, if anything, what caught her attention was that he'd been so quiet. And now the look on his face….it was confusing. Desperate and yet afraid all at the same time. And though his mouth was open and he'd taken a breath no words came out, as if he was considering, what he wanted to say. Why did she suddenly have the image in her head of being on a tightrope?

"Under the staircase, there is a trunk," he finally confessed tapping his cane against the ground and hanging his head almost in guilt. "If Emma hasn't taken it yet…it might contain something that might aid in your search."

She didn't respond. Merely nodded her head, unlocked the basement door, felt the heat and then cool magic pass over the knob that gave her access and retreated.

It was there. Just as he'd said. An old medium sized trunk, that she'd never noticed, sat under the stairs gathering so much dust that when she pulled it out, she sneezed and saw the outline of where it had been on the floor clearly, even in the faint light.

There was no lock on the trunk, but she felt the same magic that she normally felt on the doorknob upstairs only this time-

"AH!" she gasped snatching her hand away at the heated shock that greeted her. She took a breath to call for Rumple, but when she gazed up at the stairs, she saw that he was already on his way down.

"You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" he questioned with the kind of amusement she'd once seen living in his castle. "Nothing with me ever is."

Again, she couldn't respond, though this time, it was a matter of trying not to. For just a moment she'd felt herself smile, and the first thought that came to her mind was an odd funny comment that was more appropriate for two individuals who were settled into their relationship. And despite the events that had taken place earlier this evening, despite whatever her head and heart and even her body told her she knew they weren't settled. Their ground was rocky. Very, very rocky. And though she didn't know what was inside of it, she knew the moment that he opened the trunk it was about to get even more precarious. Experience told her so.

Books. Thick volumes of books of every size and shape greeted her, and she squatted down to have a better look. The ones on top were simpler, books that she was familiar with. The pages were old but still white and strong, but the more she dug, the more she found odd books. Animal skin bindings and covers, thick and delicate yellow pages, places that ink had been smeared or faded over time because of water damage. And the languages…there were many. The ones at the bottom were so old it would take her weeks maybe even months to translate them. But the others…it was odd. There was no title to these books, some of them didn't even last the entire book, some cut off only after a few pages, others pages from the end, some were filled front to back. And each one was in a different hand. No! There were many different hands writing these. A lot of different ones but some were similar. She only knew it because when she went back to examining what was on top of the trunk she found his own handwriting in one, two, four, seven, twelve of the books!

"What are these?" she asked looking up over her shoulder at him.

"I've always just called them the Dark One Chronicles," he explained grabbing a small stool from the spinning wheel and easing himself down to sit beside her. "Merlin wasn't the only one who kept spell books and records, in fact, I tend to think that was where Nimue got the idea. There has been a compulsion from every Dark One over time to find these books and journals, to keep them safe in one place so that they can be easily passed on to the next Dark One upon demise."

"How, you'd be dead?"

He tapped his temple. "But the magic wouldn't. The collective knowledge of the Dark One always lives on. Zoso, the Dark One who appeared to me, whispered the instructions to me within the first days of my acceptance of the curse. I retrieved them and kept them safe ever since, adding to them as I saw fit of course," he muttered reaching in and pulling a couple of books out of the trunk. The way his fingers moved over them, tenderly, it reminded her of the way that his hands often moved over her back as she slept. Those books were his own. Knowledge that he'd added. Knowledge that had been here this entire time, under lock and key more or less…more secrets. They haunted them even when the air should have been crisp and clear. They probably always would.

"So…if the knowledge is passed down, why hasn't Emma come to get them yet?" she questioned pushing her detest away and trying to stay focused on what mattered and not on ancient history.

"Could be any number of reasons," he answered. "The fact that she still hears voices means that she probably hasn't accepted her Darkness the way she thinks she has, the way that she should, to be a true Dark One. She might not know they exist, or since she's still communing with the voices in her head and doing their bidding she might not think she has to. It's the same information, her way would take significantly less time than our way," he answered rising from the stool and shucking off his jacket as if preparing to get to work. Get to work…was he saying…

"You think the answer is here?" she gawked as he loosened his tie and slipped it from his neck.

"Whatever Emma is doing, she's motivated by something, and her knowledge is coming from somewhere. I already told you this is the same information. It's our best chance to figure out what she's planning."

"But if that were true wouldn't you know what it was? You had the Darkness inside you for years."

"Accepting the Darkness for my own purposes is different than accepting the Darkness for their purposes. I all but shut the voices out once Bae had gone except on the odd occasion that they had something helpful to offer."

"You were the Dark One before Neal left you, Rumple, weren't you tempted?"

"Not as much as you may think," he shot back quickly. "First I had a son to save, then I had a son to raise, and then a son to protect as well as a craft to learn, there was very little time for self-exploration and discovery. Children tend to do that to parents."

There was nothing left for her to say. She'd learned the same thing after all the times that she'd looked after Little Neal and been simply too exhausted when she returned home to do much of anything else. Besides, no matter what he did or what he said she knew that he loved his son. How he showed that love and behaved might have been questionable at times, but she knew that he loved him. And he wouldn't sacrifice an entire night of looking through old records when he could just tell the answer, and they could finish this mess and move on. He was telling the truth. And by the look of the numerous books in this trunk…it was going to be a long night.

* * *

 **My apologies for the short chapter but I wanted what comes next to have a spotlight all it's own. Besides, this chapter had to deal with some really important inconsistencies I don't think the show really covered. According to the mythology of the Dark One that A &E established, Rumple should know exactly what is going on with Emma, and yet he doesn't. I had to try and come up with a reason that he wouldn't really have those answers. Now, yes, I totally get that what Emma is doing isn't exactly what the other Dark Ones were trying to do. But despite that, he should have better knowledge of what is happening because Nimue does. If she does, then he should. Unless he paid Nimue no heed. We good? All kosher? **

**Thank you, Grace5231973, Teresa Martin, Fox24, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews on the last chapter. I don't know what you will think of the chapter to come. It's kind of the continuation of the conversation they had in the shop only with a lot less yelling on both their parts. I hope that you'll find it...let's say...enlightening. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	46. Truth Or Dare

The silence was overwhelming.

Together, they each took a stack of the ancient and not so ancient books and began to go through them one by one. He took the oldest. She was good with translations but with hundreds of years on the earth, he was better. To him, it wasn't translating it was just reading. And her…well, she didn't take the newest in the trunk. Those were Rumple's, and if what he was saying was true then there was no point looking through them. They would have shown focus on Neal and not on this problem. So she began instead with the small book that he told her had once belonged to Zoso. It wasn't very large. It's barely filled two books and what she saw of the first one was mostly useless. It was discovery. Learning to use magic, following the urgings of the voices in his head, giving into the darkness. It was difficult to decipher any single logical thread worth examining. The end was no better. Zoso never really did take to the Darkness the way Rumple had, not according to these. The dagger stolen from him, forced to work for some awful Knight…he wanted out. His last entry spoke of a plan and nothing more. She glanced at Rumpelstiltskin across from her, focused on his own work and reading. Had he read all this? Did he know that he'd just been a pawn for a very sick man?

She shook the thoughts away and picked up another volume. Those were all questions for another time. The minutes ticked by and passed into hours. The tension she felt in her shoulders seemed to dissipate the more that her back slouched. Hours had gone by and nothing. She'd checked her phone what felt like a hundred times. Something should have happened by now, someone should have called!

As the hours passed and light began to touch the darkened sky she'd finally called Robin Hood when Rumple went upstairs for something or other. She'd heard the toilet flush, probably that was the reason. But Robin Hood didn't pick up. Understandable, he was probably with his daughter, trying to keep her safe. Still, she wanted so badly to know what was happening. The fact that nothing appeared to have happened, was that a bad thing or a good thing?

She rubbed her face with her hands, tried to get the blood flowing to her eyelids so that it would be easier to keep them up. She was so tired…

"I brought you tea." She hadn't even heard Rumpelstiltskin come back down the stairs and popped her head up out of her hands at the sound of his voice. "Still no word?"

She shook her head. "I can't find anything. She doesn't want the baby but Zelena. The only reason I can think she'd want that is if she wants to destroy Dark Magic but that doesn't make any sense!" she ranted. "I feel like I'm going in circles." He shook his head in mutual defeat, and next to her elbow he set an offering of a teacup and saucer down with steaming liquid inside. Part of her rejoiced. The other part cringed because it made her think of the fragment of their teacup that she was still carrying. Though that made her cringe for an entirely different reason. She never should have taken it out of this basement. It would have been safe here, in the boxes.

Her eyes roamed, and she quickly averted them when she realized what she'd done, but it was too late. When she glanced over at him, she found that he'd followed her gaze and was examining the boxes stacked neatly in the corner. Here all night and she'd almost gotten away with it without even trying to! She honestly hadn't thought about the fact that his belongings were here until just that moment.

He didn't say anything. Just took a few steps over to where they were stacked and opened the lid to the one on top. She wasn't quite sure what was in that one. Delicate things, she knew that only because that was where their cup had been stored until she moved it. But whatever it was…the way he was looking into it, she felt like she'd buried Neal and guilt rushed over her. She hadn't exactly meant for him to find his things like that.

"I uh…I did it after you left," she choked out before he could say anything. But the words felt wrong to her. "After I…made you…" It wasn't even a complete sentence, and she felt tears gather in her eyes as she quickly set the cup of tea she'd picked up aside. She couldn't stand to hold it as he beheld his things packed and stacked in the corner like old junk. But that wasn't why they were there, and some instinct inside her told her it would be better to just tell the tale than let him wonder.

"After I got home you…you were everywhere, haunting me. I thought I wanted to move on, clear you out in every possible way so that I could carry on with my life and start a new one from the fragments but…I think it was more to do with guilt," she finally admitted with a deep breath. "Sending you over the town line…I don't regret it…but at the same time, I do. I'm sorry I didn't handle things…better."

"In hindsight, if I handled things like our marriage better we wouldn't have been at the town line in the first place," she heard him mutter. "I'm sorry I didn't consider my choices better." He turned back to face her and felt this might have been what a deer felt like when it knew it was being watched. With every step closer he took her nerves pulsed underneath her skin and screamed at her to go to the door and leave but she just couldn't. The fear was too overwhelming. Fear of what…she didn't know.

"Belle," he stepped up so close to her that she could feel the fabric of his pants against her knees. It was lucky for her that the stool she was sitting on was high off the ground, and she was at about the same height that she would have been at if she'd been standing but still…she felt dwarfed. The sudden warmth in her hands startled her, but she couldn't take her wide eyes off of him, not even to look down and see their entwined hands. "I meant what I said before, when we were at the shop. I want to be the hero that you deserve. I want to become worthy of the love that you once had for me. That I hope you still have for me. If we could start from the beginning…"

His words tapered off, and she knew that he was waiting for her to say something, to give her an answer of some kind. To encourage him to go on or stop him, give him some hint of what came next for them. That was just the problem. She didn't know what came next. This was the part she'd always taken him back, that she'd listened to her heart screaming at her to give him a chance, it had always been so loud over the voice in her head telling her not to bother and to protect herself. He always said things like this, she always took him back, and she always got hurt when he lied. Why should she believe him now? Because he wasn't the Dark One anymore? Would that make a difference?

She cleared her throat and took a breath before pulling her hands from him. She couldn't do this. Not now, she wasn't ready. They weren't ready, not while this was happening, not while Emma was out there with Zelena and Excalibur and…

"There has to be something here," she whispered turning back to the books. "We can't do this, we have to keep looking."

The silence in the room was deafening. She didn't want to look up, she didn't want to see the look on his face after she changed the subject. But she could feel his eyes on her, on the side of her face, the back of her neck, her cheek bone…she didn't want to look, but his gaze itched and after what might have been minutes or hours she couldn't stop herself from taking a peek out of the corner of her eye.

She instantly felt guilty all over again. The look of disbelief and hurt on his face was clear. He wasn't an idiot. He knew that she'd changed the subject. And he knew that it probably wasn't a good sign but she wanted to scream against his thoughts. She didn't know if it was a good sign or a bad sign! She didn't know what would happen from this moment on. How could she?

"Rumple, I-"

"You know if the others haven't called you yet, and nothing has happened then it's safe to assume that we have a bit of time. You look exhausted. Perhaps you should go upstairs and rest for a while. I'll continue to look through the chronicles."

Rest for a while. It was such a simple suggestion, a logical argument…but it seemed so out of place after what had just passed between them. Still…rest for a while. A rest would be nice. She couldn't remember the last time that she'd slept let alone the last time that she'd slept in their bed!

Her bed.

She hadn't made that mistake since…

She quickly rose off of the stool that she'd been sitting on and grabbed the book she'd been paging through. "Yeah that might be best," she admitted quietly. He was too close. She was too far. Her head was too cloudy, and he was too clear. She wanted to keep reading, but maybe it would be best if they didn't do it in the same room. If they were apart for a while. Maybe that would clear her head and help her think. But…

"Rumple…" she turned just before she mounted the stairs and glanced over at the man who she swore hadn't moved an inch. "I can trust you, can't I? If you find something…you'll tell me?"

She felt every breath that left her body in the moments that followed. Hope and fear and restlessness fleeing her body and filling the space between them. It was terrifying. Until he opened his mouth

"The only way to prove it to you is if you give me the chance," he muttered looking her in the eye.

That was just as terrifying as she feared it would be, but once again he was right. Either she'd stay, and babysit him and never know, or she'd leave him alone and give him a chance, simultaneously risking her heart in the process. Maybe it was exhaustion? Maybe it was curiosity or even just daring, or just a desire to put some space between the two of them, but somehow she nodded and then turned and climbed the stairs to bed with nothing but a hope that things would be different this time.

* * *

 **Alright, so obviously I had to fill some time here because the timeline just sucks. But enough about that, because you've heard enough of that. This scene and the shop scene; I felt that they worked in conjunction, not necessarily to explain 5x10, though I do like to think that it makes it a bit clearer by making it a bit foggier (stay with me!), but makes it a bit less out of left field. This is where I felt the ball was dropped with the scripts. I feel like these conversations really are the missing pieces. Whether you like these conversations or hate them, it is my belief that one or both of these conversations would have made a world of difference in the Rumbelle 5A storyline.**

 **Thank you, Fox24, Teresa Martin, Carlyle23, Grace5231973, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews that you left for the last chapter. For the most part were going to be able to get into the seen stuff once more. So enjoy this chapter, it's one of the last of the unseen stuff. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	47. Back and Forth

The knock on her door was gentle, she knew it was, but the moment that she heard it she found herself flinging herself up and reaching across the nightstand for the vile of tearing potion she'd kept there ever since Cruella and Ursula came to town. It wasn't deadly, it simply caused its victim's eyes to tear. She'd added her blood; she'd be the only one not affected. If she had to get up and run-

"Belle…Belle, it's me." For a moment her heart raced at the voice. He'd worked with Cruella and Ursula and after being awakened so suddenly for a moment, she thought that her worst fear might have come true, and she needed to use the potion and flee!

But then she noticed the clothes she was wearing, the wear and tear from falling down a hill, and the dirt from the forest she'd run through. Cruella and Ursula were weeks ago. Rumple wasn't precisely the enemy anymore. But what he was…

"Belle," his voice came again. "I'm sorry, but you need to get up. I can't let you sleep anymore."

He stayed respectfully outside the door, though his voice sounded close and after the conversations they'd had in the dark of the night she imagined him standing close because it was as close as she'd let him get at the moment. He'd want to come in and wake her up like he always did, with a hand on her back and sweet whispers in her ear and-

"Belle." She shook herself at the third call and set the potion aside. She didn't know what he was to her right now, but she knew that she didn't need that potion. Still dressed from yesterday, she pushed herself up off the bed and opened their-her door a few inches so that he could see her face.

"Did they call?" she questioned first. "Did they say where they were? What happened?"

"No, I just…I haven't found anything yet, and I figured that at this point we could get more work done if we collected a few books from my shop and worked in the library. Maybe we can find a reference in the books you keep in the back."

That sounded…depressing, actually. Though she had to admit the idea wasn't half bad. He hadn't found anything out about what Emma was trying to do, what Nimue might have been trying to get her to do, in the chronicles, but going to the library to look up information wasn't the worst idea. Maybe they could collect Merlin's journal from the shop too. After all the books that Regina had been working with gave the spell for the removal of Light Magic, maybe there was something in those books she had missed.

"Right just uh…just let me get dressed and tell Rapunzel to take today off, and I'll be ready to go."

She tried to close the door so she could get a quick shower before going into town but found his hand reaching out, not for her, but to hand her… "Tea," he murmured almost shyly.

Tea. He'd brought her tea, again, just like last night. It was a kind gesture, not unlike something he would have done before. It was sweet even. But then it wasn't the kind, sweet gestures that had pushed her to send him over the town line. And it certainly wasn't kind, sweet gestures that made those kinds of thoughts keep rising up in her mind and making her feel like she couldn't stand far enough away from him. "Thank you," she whispered reaching out to take the cup before turning and closing the door. It was rude. She knew that it was but doing it, being away from him like this just felt…better in some way.

She got ready to go to town quickly. Though if she was honest, she didn't do it as quickly as she knew she could. She dragged her feet a bit, putting some braids in her hair as she collected her thoughts and prepared to face him again. Why was this so difficult? She really wasn't sure.

"Belle," the knock came maybe a half hour later, and she listened for his voice quietly as he told her he didn't think they should wait much longer. So she took a deep breath, stared at her small, scared face in the mirror, and did her best to straighten her back and look like the woman she was familiar with. But her eyes…how long would it be until she saw herself in her own eyes again?

"Coming!" she finally called. Outside, he was ready to go. He met her at the front door, and she could see a few sections of damp hair and different colors to his suit. He'd obviously showered and grabbed a suit she'd packed away downstairs. That was an odd feeling. It was the first time that they'd ever been in this house and not shared their bedroom. Her bedroom. She was getting a headache already.

"There's a bit of a chill in the air this morning," he commented quietly, holding out a pink jacket for her.

"How ominous. I hope that's not an omen for today."

"Stranger things have happened," he argued helping her into her coat. She grabbed her scarf, gloves, a hat, and-

"The trunk. You wanted to take the Chronicles with us."

"It's already in the car."

She took a step back at his words and eyed him skeptically, examining his stature, looking for a hint that he was lying to her, that he wasn't as hurt as his cane suggested that he was hiding something. "You put it in the car all by yourself?"

"Not easily," he confirmed. "The house took a bit of a beating." She turned and examined the floor at his motion. Yes, there were drag marks from the basement stairs to the front door. Perhaps the reason that he took the shower was because it took so much work. Though she did have to acknowledge that her immediate suspicion didn't bode well for the future of their relationship. In the moment they were fine, but otherwise…

"You could have asked for help," she suggested grabbing her bag and reaching for the door.

"We needed to go," was his only response. She didn't argue anymore and simply walked out to the car so they could drive to town. Besides, it wasn't like they were really arguing to begin with, they were just…off. Being around him was awkward and strange, terrifying and upsetting in a way that it had never been before even when they first met and were living in the Dark Castle as tense and angry residents. The silence and space between them in the car seemed to get more noticeable and bigger with every mile they drove. And finally, she broke down, opened her phone, and called Rapunzel at the library with the time she had. She told her to take the day off, that there was a lot going on and she needed a bit of space and wanted to spend the day in the library for herself. She didn't tell her about what was going on. The last thing she wanted to do was involve Rapunzel in whatever was going on with Emma. Rapunzel was all too happy to have an impromptu day with Flynn and by the time they pulled up to the shop and got out of the car she saw Rapunzel leaving the library and quickly trotting down toward Granny's diner. Good. That was good.

"I didn't know you'd replaced Ruby," Rumple commented as he unlocked the shop, despite the window that was still broken from yesterday.

It was a perfectly decent comment to make, but it automatically made her jaw set. "Months ago," she practically growled. The reason he didn't know was that he'd been away, because she'd sent him over the town line and had the shop and the library to worry about and if he hadn't betrayed her and forced her to-

"What did we need here again?" she questioned instead of letting her thoughts run away with her.

"Just a couple of books, then we can retire to the library, keep reading and try to figure out what Emma might want with Zelena."

"If we haven't found anything yet-"

"We just have to keep looking."

"Well if it isn't the Golds!" she jumped at the sudden shout behind her and spun around. She'd originally backed against the case but when she realized it was only Killian she took a step forward…then back again. He looked different. His hair looked greasier, messier, and the eye liner he usually sported…it seemed a bit thicker than normal.

"Killian you…you scared me. We didn't hear you come in."

"Didn't use the door, just let myself in."

"Let yourself in? What-"

"-Belle-"

"Good news!" Killian announced before Rumple could finish his sentence. "I've seen my memories from Camelot! I've discovered what it is Emma is trying to hide from us."

Her eyes widened. He'd…Emma had…that was remarkable! So, Rumple's advice last night…it had worked! Emma had told him what she was doing. Maybe she wasn't so far gone as they thought she was, maybe Rumple was wrong, and Nimue could help her! Them. "Well…what is it?!" she demanded.

Killian glanced at her from underneath his messy bangs and smiled. "Me," he responded simply.

She felt a chill race over her skin and into her stomach. Him. He was what she was hiding? What did that mean? And why did she have a feeling it wasn't going to be good?

"You see after you gave me such…wonderful advice about tracking Emma down I did! She took me to her house, which I suppose you could call our house, and then imprisoned me in the basement with who else, but the Wicked Witch of the West! I helped her escape, she helped locate my memories, and what did I see…but my death!"

It took a second for the words to sink in. "You died?" she questioned. No. This most certainly wasn't going to be good. First Robin and now Killian?

"Oh, indeed I did love, or should have if not for Emma," he proclaimed darkly. "In Camelot, Emma was nearly successful at reuniting the two blades when an old injury returned, and I nearly died. I should have died. I begged Emma to let me die but…" he stopped and chuckled, but there was nothing funny about the tone of it. It was angry. Malicious. It was evil. "Emma couldn't watch another person she loved die and realized that death wasn't a problem, not if I was just as immortal as she was…"

Just as immortal as she was. Immortal. Immortal like a Dark One. And his attitude and the darkness…she knew it wasn't going to be good. Even the way he was playing with the hook on his hand with a wicked smile Zelena would have been jealous of seemed to confirm her sudden fear. "Emma turned you into a Dark One," she realized.

"And now you've come for your revenge," Rumpelstiltskin added quickly before she could figure out what it meant. Revenge? Revenge on who? On…on Rumpelstiltskin! Revenge for Milah? Hook was the Dark One and now…he was going to try to finish him like he'd intended to centuries ago before he'd met Emma. Rumple was his plan? The target? She despised it, but it all made perfect sense to her.

"The thought had crossed my mind," he responded taking a step forward and smoothing his hand over the metal surface of his hook. "For this lovely piece of hardware…I think I'll take your hand, for Milah your heart, for filling Emma with the Darkness…mmm…I think your head will do quite nicely."

She watched Rumple breathless, trying to look for a cue for a suggestion of what to do. This wasn't the Killian that she was used to dealing with, this was Captain Hook! The villain that had shot her! And though it didn't seem like it after all this time, she had very little experience in dealing with him. Hook as the Dark One…was there anything that could help them?

"So what are you waiting for?" Rumple questioned, hunched against his cane. "Get on with it."

She opened her mouth to argue, to tell him that he couldn't do this, shouldn't encourage him! But-

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no!" Killian exclaimed wagging his finger in the air, his voice…it was theatrical. Dramatic. Like a beast in a castle she'd once worked at. He was mocking him. "I've been waiting centuries for this moment, and I really want to…" he took a deep breath in through his nose as he stepped toward the door, She hoped and feared that he'd leave. She didn't want him in the shop. But she also didn't want him to leave only to begin a hunt that forced them to look around every corner in fear… "savor it!" he finally finished as he cast his eyes onto something on the shelf.

A cutless. He grabbed it from where it was, bend down, and pushed it across the floor toward them so that it stopped just at their feet like an offering. What on earth? "Get your affairs in order dearie for we duel at noon on my ship!" he proclaimed, hands in the air, still mocking the man that he'd once been. Until he didn't. Until he dropped his arms and all pretense and stared back at them from underneath the hair covering his eyes with eyes that suddenly matched the blackness of his clothes and she suspected his heart. "Where it all began…" he growled.

"How poetic," Rumple muttered beside her. "But we both know this weapon cannot kill you."

"AH! True! That sword can't kill me," he said almost joyfully as he stepped up closer to them again. She wanted to retreat, to grab his hand and pull him into the back but what good would it do. This wasn't Merida, this was- "But this one can!" he exclaimed making a sword appear out of nowhere in his hand. A sword that she recognized.

"Excalibur," Rumple breathed beside her. It was the sword and the dagger, united as one once more…and now the only weapon capable of taking the life of a Dark One.

"You have it," she gawked quietly.

"Aye," Hook responded never once taking his eyes off of Rumple. "Well, now that it's whole it can no longer control me but it can…oh…oh…oh kill me!" he teased, playing with the thing like it were made of wooden scraps, a child's toy…instead of the thing that might bring death.

"All you have to do is take it from me," he dared. For a moment she saw something flicker behind his eyes and searched hard for it to appear again. It never did. But the thought was planted…did he want death? "So…what say you crocodile? Shall we finish what we started?"

"Indeed," Rumple breathed with a nod. Her jaw dropped in disbelief. She glanced over at Hook and found him grinning ear to ear as Isaac once had and then, before she could say anything or do anything…he was gone. Vanished in a puff of smoke…the same way she realized he'd snuck into the shop.

* * *

 **This conversation...I hope the entrance to it is smooth. I had the hardest time coming up with a good way to really get into the conversation. This was the best that I could do. I hope that it's acceptable.**

 **Thank you, Carlyle23, Grace5231973, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma, for reviewing the previous chapter. Thank you for being so faithful and for always responding. I really appreciate it! This posting schedule hasn't been easy on either of us but I really am thankful that you take the time to review and let me know how I'm doing. It means more than you'll ever know! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	48. Broken Tales and Trust

Killian was gone. And what had he left in his wake? Chaos. And terror. "That's it," she breathed. "We need to find Mary Margaret and Regina. Now!"

"Belle-"

"We can't do this on our own Rumple!" she snapped before he could stop her. "We need their help and if Killian _and_ Emma are Dark Ones and we're fighting on two fronts-"

A shrill sound suddenly filled the room and cut through their noise to create silence. They were both on edge, and she knew that it took them more than a few seconds to realize that it was her cell phone. Even then she wasn't sure that she wanted to pick it up. All night they'd been waiting for a call and now, after everything had happened, a call finally came?! Terrified as she was, she couldn't ignore the call and stepped up to the place she'd dropped her bag.

"It's Mary Margaret," she informed him looking at the screen before flipping it open. "Mary Margaret! I'm glad you called, it's Killian, he's-"

"A Dark One, we know," Mary Margaret breathed. "We called to warn you. We figured if Hook were a Dark One the first place he'd want to go was-"

"Rumpelstiltskin…he's already been here."

"We're too late…"

"No! No, no, no, we're fine both of us but…this is more complicated than we thought. We need to talk, get everyone on the same page."

"Agreed, there's a lot going on. How fast can you get to Regina's house?"

Five minutes. That was what they normally needed to get to Regina's house, but when they were both in the car, going at top speed without the fear of tickets because no one in this town ever seemed to get a ticket for their speed they got there in three. And what they saw when they let themselves into the front door and followed the voices to the dining room, wasn't something they could prepare for.

"Emma!" she breathed stopping in her tracks and holding out a hand to grab his arm as if she could protect him from to the Dark One just by placing herself between the two of them. "What is she doing here?!"

"Telling us everything she knows!" Regina inserted quickly getting up from her spot at the table where it appeared Emma had been standing, straight-backed, addressing them as if they were her army.

"You don't have to worry I've been fitted with a very new, very uncomfortable cuff that blocks my magic," Emma said in a cool unimpressed but still irritated voice. She raised her hand to show the cuff that she'd once seen fit on hands like Peter Pan, Rumple, and Zelena...once upon a time.

"If Emma has the cuff then where is Zelena?" she questioned skeptically.

Regina only rolled her eyes. "Don't get me started…" she growled.

"Can we all just take a seat and figure out what we know?" Emma questioned with her low voice. Her jaw was set and her eyes were Dark. She was without her power. But she clearly wasn't happy about it. The feeling was mutual then. Emma didn't like the cuff on her arm, she didn't like Emma in the same room with them, not after she'd held Rumple and Merida's heart captive. But she might have a point. Emma knew why they were here, she knew what was going on, and she was right. They all had different information and their plans only ever worked when they sat down, and all knew the same thing.

Unhappily she reached behind her and grabbed Rumple's arm. She dragged him and the cane and sword he hadn't let go of since the shop, with her into the dining room. "How did this happen?" she huffed as David stood and offered his seat to her so he could stand behind his wife.

Emma looked unhappy, but this was a different type of unhappiness than what she'd seen only seconds ago. It wasn't anger, it was irritation. "Killian nearly died in Camelot, I did the only thing I could think to do to save his life and made him into a new Dark One, bound to Excalibur just as I was to the dagger."

"You made him immortal. And Merlin?" she questioned just as sterilely as Emma had explained Killian's near death and resuscitation…if she could really call it that.

"He's dead, Killian killed him to create the curse and get us back here."

"Hook created the curse!" she blanched, that didn't make sense. "But his memories…if he created the curse why would he only just now-"

"Because he created the curse and I created the memory wipe to protect him. I stole your memories so no one would remember he was ever a Dark One, so he wouldn't have to live with the temptation and fall again."

She explained everything so emotionlessly it was chilling. People should always show at least some hint of emotion. Emma showed none, even while working with them, even cut off from her magic. It was terrifying, but also lightening in a way. So this was what a person fully immersed in the Darkness looked like. She had no idea how much Rumple had truly fought it off until this moment. Maybe she had a part of that.

Across the room, David let out a small snort. "'The Dark One's found me'," he muttered. "The message Merlin left…he wasn't talking about Emma."

"He was talking about Hook," Mary Margaret realized.

"But would a memory wipe really be enough?" she questioned aloud. "Wouldn't he have somehow known he was a Dark One? Shouldn't he have heard the voices like Emma has, like you did?!"

"He probably did," Rumple answered quietly. "But he's a pirate that has always been more prone to darkness than light, especially without proper guidance. Without knowing what it was how was he supposed to know what had happened, he might have thought they were just voices in his head or old thoughts of revenge creeping to the surface. And of course, the added stress of Ms. Swan's actions…"

"It would have been hard for anyone to really put it together," Mary Margaret inserted.

But it wasn't important, not right now, what was important was a clever little detail Emma had inserted that allowed her to leave off what she assumed was a large piece of information. "'Fall again'?" she questioned. "What did Killian do?"

A muscle in Emma's jaw tightened, and she broke her perfectly straight back to bend over the table. "I can't remember," she hissed finally showing a bit of anger and regret.

"When the pirate discovered the information he wiped Emma's memory of what he'd been doing so that now she doesn't even know what's going on," Regina explained for her.

So…now Hook was the bad guy? Again?! But what about Emma?! What about what she'd been doing these last three weeks? And Zelena?

"Do you remember what you were trying to do?" she questioned looking at the top of Emma's perfectly bowed head.

She didn't stay that way for long. Eventually, she picked her head up and looked at Regina of all people, who threw her hands up in the air and gave a small stiff nod as if she was letting Emma take the stage. "That's your sin to confess, not mine."

"Regina…" Mary Margaret warned.

"No she's right," Emma conceded. "I remember enough to know that I took Killian's memories so he wouldn't remember what he was doing then put a plan together in my head. So many voices, so much knowledge…I put together a spell of my own with their help, a spell to rid Killian and myself of the Darkness for good. With the blades reunited I knew I could transfer both his power and my own into a single being who could be killed with Excalibur. The curse would die with this person."

"Zelena," she realized.

"I sped up her pregnancy to be sure no innocent lives would be lost, I was doing everyone a favor!" she spat irritated. "I still can't believe you don't see that."

A sacrifice of wickedness, that was all it took to destroy the darkness though this spell would have been different as it was only meant to destroy the curse. But still…Emma was going to sacrifice Zelena! But then why…

"But of course it didn't work out that way. Hook and Zelena escaped, Killian took my memories, restrained me, and took the sword and the dreamcatchers as well. When the protection spell I set around the house to do my work died just before dawn, he was already gone."

Her head was spinning. This was so much information. Too much information! And far too much betrayal. Excalibur, gone. The dreamcatchers, their memories, gone. Emma's memories, gone. Zelena missing, Killian a Dark One…it just didn't seem entirely possible for all this to have happened in the last twelve hours and yet…and yet she'd seen the proof of what had happened in their shop barely an hour ago. It was before that even! Killian said that Emma had been nearly successful in uniting the two blades in Camelot which meant that she'd had them. And if Killian had been tied to the sword as Emma and Rumple had been to the dagger then…

"Killian put the sword back in the stone," she realized. "He must have done it so no one could control him, so no one would be able to stop him."

"Stop him from what, though," Regina pointed out. "That's the one thing we don't have."

"I believe we have the answer to that," Rumple spoke up, reaching forward and putting the sword he'd been carrying on the table before him. "To finally take his revenge. To kill me."

"Hook let himself into the shop this morning when we arrived," she filled in for him. "He explained that he was the Dark One now and that he was finally going to take his revenge on Rumple for Milah. They're supposed to duel at noon on his ship. If he doesn't show up…"

"I'm sure the show will be just as spectacular," Regina drawled sitting forward and examining the sword. "Well, once a pirate always a pirate," she responded at the end.

"As a man, Hook spend centuries trying to kill me, it makes sense that revenge would be on his mind," Rumple explained.

"Why wipe my memory if he was going to announce his plan anyway," Emma argued immediately. "There must be more to it!"

She didn't disagree, but figuring out what was going on without memories was a big disadvantage. And they didn't exactly have all the time in the world. "Yeah well even if there is we only have until noon to stop him…and…to save you," she pointed out reaching over and putting her hand on his arm. A small simple gesture. That was a good start. A very good start, just like their hug had been last night. But as quickly as the feeling had come it passed and the moment he looked over at her with sad eyes she found herself quickly pulling her hand away as if it burned. Maybe it was too much to start with.

"What about Merlin's message?" David questioned.

"She said this Nimue is the key to stopping the Dark One," Mary Margaret pointed out for the rest of them and for a moment she was confused because she knew that Mary Margaret knew who she was…only she didn't. Regina's phone call, Mary Margaret had been talking with her when they were discussing Nimue. This was why she hated them all working so separately! She could have cleared this up last night!

"Nimue was Merlin's True Love," Emma admitted in a low tone.

"She was also the first Dark One," Rumple added.

"I know," Emma responded. "How do we find out more about her?"

"Start your search with the Dark One Chronicles, there are many texts that can help us." She glared at her husband from where she sat, but he kept his eyes trained on his hands. She felt like this was all on a loop. They'd been here last night, they'd run around in circles, dismissing Nimue, searching the chronicles…what did he think they were going to find in the next few hours that they hadn't found already?! What was he planning?

"As much as I appreciate devotion to scholarship, there is an easier way," Emma insisted gently. "I am still a Dark One…I can protect you Gold. You just have to take off the cuff!"

Rumple snorted as Emma presented her cuffed arm to him. He didn't move his hands from where they were folded before him. It wasn't even a temptation. Emma glanced over at her mother and father, her eyes wide and almost wild. "You don't trust me!"

No one answered. They all merely looked around at her and then at each other- "Well if the situations were reversed would you trust me?" Rumple finally asked of her. The answer was already there in her mind, it had been ever since he'd returned. No. She wouldn't have and shouldn't have. Even he admitted it. Apparently, she was the only one to get the message too late.

* * *

 **This scene. This ridiculously staged scene! Do you realize how stupid and pointless the setting of this scene was? Everyone, EVERYONE, except Belle and Rumple were all over at Emma's house. So...what, they just up and decided to move to Regina's house to meet Belle and Rumpelstiltskin? Just for the sole purpose that Henry could come downstiars and confront Emma?! Now, don't get me wrong that was totally necessary, but did it have to go here?! Did they really have to move everyone over to Regina's house, put her under the same roof as the son that Regina knows doesn't want to see Emma?! Is that really in character?! Honestly, this was the moment that I felt like I knew they weren't thinking fully about the story anymore, just putting people where it was easiest.**

 **Thank you Fox24, Carlyle23, Grace5231973, Ladybugsmomma, and Teresa Martin, for the reviews you left me. I hope you don't mind how odd this chapter was. There was only so much I could do with it. The good news is that it did have some redeeming qualities. For instance, when I first watched this scene, before transcribing it, I thought I was going to have to go back and change a few of the scenes I'd previously written. But I didn't. Mary Margaret, I just had to get out of the room when Belle discovers who Nimue is. I felt that this chapter supported that statement because she didn't seem shocked. The other big one, and this one actually made me laugh, was the mention of searching the chronicles. At first, I thought "oh I have to change that, they haven't looked in them yet" but then when I watched this scene...I kid you not Belle straight up glares at Rumple when he makes that suggestion. Seriously, you can look it up. I didn't have to rewrite the scene, I just had to work with what I had. I hope you'll find that it is acceptable. Alright ya'll, only 10 more chapters left, if you can believe it! We're on the homestretch, let's see if I can land this plane! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	49. A Son Scorned

Emma wanted the cuff taken off. But she knew that no one was going to do that for her. And rightfully so. One Dark One and a Wicked Witch running around town was enough, two Dark Ones would be…no. Even with Emma working with them she'd learned that they simply couldn't trust her right now. No one was going to remove that cuff from her.

"So it's true…" Henry's voice rang out from behind Emma, and every head turned to look at him. How long had he been there? "You're here…"

She didn't think she'd ever seen that look on Henry's face. Until this moment, she wasn't even sure that Henry was capable of anger like that until now!

"Henry…" Emma breathed moving closer to him. "I need you to tell them it's okay to take off this cuff," she suggested once again presenting her wrist.

She watched Henry. After all Emma had done to him with that girl that he liked…what would he do now? Trust his mother like he always had? Or would the Darkness inside of her keep him from doing it? Oddly enough she felt like Henry had the best judgment out of all of them when it came to something like this. She was curious to see what would happen.

"It's the only way to figure it all out!" Emma urged.

"No!" Henry snapped back, barely glancing at the cuff.

"What?!"

"You lied to us! About Hook, about everything, why should we trust you now?" Henry demanded. He hadn't yelled. Or screamed. His tone was even and steady…but it was angry. Clearly very, very angry.

"Henry I'm your mother!" Emma begged, or reasoned…it was difficult to say which.

"Are you? Cause the mom I know wouldn't keep things from me."

Emma was quiet for a moment, and she had an urge to look away, maybe even to walk out of the room. She felt like she'd just stumbled onto something private that shouldn't be witnessed by anyone here except for Henry and Emma and possibly Regina. But it was too late. They were here. And Henry and Emma… "I thought you were the one person that would understand," Emma said almost sadly.

"I thought you were the one person I could trust!" Henry spat back.

"So you can forgive Regina and Gold for everything they've done but not me?!"

"They've changed!" Henry insisted, his temperament still even and restrained. "They showed me they changed!"

Emma cast her eyes away from Henry. She looked at Rumple. Had he proven he'd changed. Was a bear enough? "So did I…"

"When we first met, yeah…but the minute things got tough you didn't come to anybody, you decided you would figure it out on your own. We were a team."

"Operation Cobra, I remember," she smirked.

"But now you just want your dark magic back so you can do it alone! And I've seen what you do with dark magic!" Henry finally turned and stormed out of the room, taking the stairs two and three at a time as he retreated to his room. Emma followed but didn't give chase, just watched him as he went.

"He needs time Emma," Regina suggested. She fought to stay in her seat, to stay right where she was and not get up and go after Henry because she knew how painful it was. Their conversation…it might as well have been what she and Rumple had talked-fought about last night. How was it that she and Henry understood…isolation never helped anyone. Ignoring those you loved and taking decisions out of their hands wasn't helping them or freeing them. It was degrading.

"We should really get to the library, we've got a lot of work to do!" she finally interrupted. As much as she wanted to go to Henry he didn't need pressure, he needed time to work through his emotions on his own for a bit. And they needed time to try and figure out more about Nimue and what Hook was planning, especially if Rumple insist they check the Chronicles again. Though she expected that this time it wasn't so much searching for answers as it was for information. She hadn't even been able to read half of those books…how were David and Mary Margaret going to manage? Maybe with Regina-

"I have a stop to make first," Regina quickly inserted as though she'd read her mind.

She nodded, though she'd rather have Regina with her in this. No, she still didn't like her, but Regina and Rumple knew the most about magic, they would be the most helpful.

"Let me guess…I'm not invited," Emma drawled from the place she had yet to move from. She took a breath. No, no one had ever really said she couldn't come but…she had to admit that in her mind's eye she hadn't exactly pictured Emma with them.

"Emma…" Mary Margaret breathed fitting her coat around her. "We love you!"

"You don't trust me…"

"We don't trust the Darkness!" David clarified. "Stay here and let us save you. It's for the best."

"And do what? Babysit my teenage son?"

"Oh, quite the opposite," Regina insisted.

"Henry babysit me? Somehow I don't think he'll be willing to at the moment."

"Don't be smart Emma. We're on your side now, there's no need to be defensive. But Henry will be going to town with his grandparents. And you…well, we can't leave you here without protection."

"You want to call a babysitter for me?" Emma suggested turning around and staring at her with wide eyes. "I'm the Dark One, who exactly do you have in mind the Wicked Nanny of the West."

"Actually, if Regina is willing to work a small summoning charm, I know of someone who would probably be more than pleased to assist," Rumple commented stepping forward.

She opened her mouth the ask who he was talking about, but the floor above her creaked, as if someone had just stepped on it and suddenly she had no interest in being part of this conversation. She wanted to be part of another one.

"Regina…would you mind if I…" she gestured upstairs but Regina didn't take her eyes off of Rumpelstiltskin.

Regina shrugged, her eyes trained on the ceiling. "You're as good as anyone at the moment," she conceded.

She didn't wait for any more permission just launched herself forward and took the steps after Henry. She knew that he wanted to be left alone, he deserved to be left alone, but there were plenty of places to sulk in the library, and if he was going to come with them then someone had to get him.

The one and only time she'd been upstairs in Regina's house was a few months ago when they'd arrived to find a very pregnant Mary Margaret nearly unconscious. She hadn't exactly paid attention to rooms then. But now it was easy to guess which room was Henry's. It was the only door down the hallway that was closed.

She knocked. "Henry it's me," she called. There was no answer. Slowly she reached down, twisted the knob, and found it locked. "Henry, it's Belle, we're getting ready to go, and I just want to talk."

"I'm fine," he called back, his voice muffled through the sound of the door. "I don't want to talk."

She sighed. Fine. Fine was never fine. Lacey had taught her that. Freaked out, insecure, neurotic, and emotional (double check). That was what fine meant according to Lacey. And it wasn't the only thing she'd taught her. She eyed the little pinhole the door knob with a smirk because it was too easy. Using a bobby pin would have been a waste. All it really needed would be a straighten out metal hanger. Though since she didn't have one, a bobby pin was going to have to do. She stuck it into the little hole, heard the click, knocked again but turned the knob so he couldn't relock it. "I'm coming in," she called though she waited a few seconds to see if she heard scrambling and when she didn't, went ahead and opened the door.

It was a nice room. Blue. There were clocks everywhere, gadgets and knick-knacks that suited Henry and his personality, but also reminded her of Neal and Rumple in an odd way. The bedroom made her smirk, until she saw Henry laying on his bed with his back turned to her. "Hey," she breathed.

"I don't want to talk," he insisted again.

She smirked. "You know…it's been my experience that the times we don't want to talk are the times we need to talk the most." She watched her grandson carefully, suddenly wishing that Neal was here, that he would have this opportunity to talk to him. But he wasn't. And if she couldn't do it then…

 _"I'd rather you than most people,"_ his voice informed her in her head.

"You know there's a lot to talk about," she pushed. "Not just Emma but that girl-"

"Violet," Henry snapped. "Her name is Violet."

She nodded. That was the biggest issue for him then. "Have you talked to her? Since the night of the dance, I mean?"

She waited for a breath and finally she saw Henry shake his head. "She's called a couple of times."

"And you didn't answer?" she assumed.

"I didn't know what to say! 'Hey, Violet I know you don't remember, but I'm sorry my mom stole your heart'?!"

She felt bad for him. Truly she did. It was his first crush, and although he knew something awful had happened in Camelot with her, he also knew that she didn't know it and that his mother, the person who always promised to look out for him and protect him and opened her up to that kind of heartbreak. It had to be devastating. Parents shouldn't hurt their children like that. And they certainly shouldn't play with their lives the way that Emma had either. But Emma…right now…

"You know…right now your mother isn't really-"

"I know," Henry snapped again finally turning over and sitting on his bed. He faced her with a straight and angry face. "I know that she's not really my mother, but that doesn't make what she did right! Does that forgive what Grandpa did to you? Do you trust him now just because he's not the Dark One anymore?"

She was so taken back by the sudden question that she actually took a couple of steps away from Henry. Smart boy. Henry had always been a smart boy.

"Rumple and I…you shouldn't compare yourself to us. There are a lot of problems between Rumple and I-"

"So I should just forget about it? You think I should trust her?"

"I'm not saying that."

"It's what she's saying!"

"Henry, I'm not her!" she insisted a little louder than she probably should have. She'd never had an argument with Henry. Not one that she could remember at least. She'd fought with Neal before of course and what she liked about it was that in the end sanity and logic usually won out, even if she didn't want it to but Henry wasn't Neal. Would Henry see the same things as Neal did?

"Look," she muttered stepping forward and setting herself down next to him on the bed. "I came up here because…" why had she come up here? Why had she volunteered to talk to Henry? Was it really just because she felt sorry for him, or was it deeper than that? What would Neal want her to tell him? "I came up here to tell you that you aren't alone. I've been sitting where you are sitting before, and I know how lonely it gets. I know how much it hurts. I know how much it stings to have someone you love hurt you but…but we can't wallow. We can't let it take away the goodness inside of us, we can't let it destroy us."

"You think I should trust her," Henry assumed once more, though she was pleased to hear his tone was far less aggressive than it was before.

"I didn't say that," she repeated. "I'm saying that what your mother did to Violet and to you was awful, you need time to be mad, you deserve time to be mad, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise! But you also shouldn't let it affect your judgment or keep you from doing the things you want to do. Because if you do, then the Darkness doesn't just live inside your mother or Rumple…it lives inside us. They win, and we lose."

"Can you trust Grandpa again after everything he did?" Henry asked so quickly she'd barely finished her sentence. She felt a stab of guilt explode painfully in her chest. Wasn't that the million dollar question of the day?

"I don't know Henry," she admitted honestly. "There are a lot of reasons why I shouldn't, more reasons than why I should but…there are moments when you have to put aside your own feelings and do what's right before you consider them. And what's right now is going to the library so that we can do everything we can to help the people of Storybrooke, to make sure the Darkness is destroyed and can't hurt anyone anymore. That's letting the light win. And you should come too. We could use all the extra hands we can get. Besides, Emma's going to stay here so…it might be good for you to get out for a while and do something good for a change instead of locking yourself up here all by yourself with her waiting downstairs. You were always helpful to me in the shop, I have no doubt you can help in the library too."

Henry stayed silent for a while. He stared straight ahead at his open door and didn't even bother to give her a sideways glance. Then, after a few moments, he nodded and rose. "I'll come with you," he stated. "But not because I want to help my mom. It's because I want to help Violet. I want to make things right with her so that the next time I see her face to face, I'll know what to say."

She smiled at her Grandson. That kind of mentality sounded familiar. Was it right? She didn't know anymore. A long time ago she might have thought no but now…why not. Henry was up, he was still angry, but he was determined. That was better than lying on his bed sulking, or breaking into tears in the middle of Granny's. It was a step. Right direction, wrong direction…at least it was a step.

"Sounds like a good enough reason to me."

* * *

 **Eh, I'm not crazy about how this chapter turned out. I liked the idea of Belle being the one to go to Henry, it seemed appropriate and important since she had so many good conversations with Henry in Camelot. But I fear that I've dropped the ball on the conversation itself. I'm just not thrilled with how it came out. My apologies.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Fox24, Rumbellefan, Carlyle23, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews and for the awesome conversations that they have started. It's a great joy to talk with you all and get that final push from you as we go about this series and this last set of chapters. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	50. A Hasty Ultimatum

As far as bonding moments went with Henry that had not exactly been one she was proud of. They'd had better conversations than that when he worked in the store on Saturdays, but what they'd had was something at least. She couldn't blame him. He was tense, stressed out about Violet, and like it or not Henry wasn't a boy anymore. He was becoming a teenager. There were differences between being a teenage boy and a teenage girl, but if she recalled, mood swings like this were to be expected. Besides, his torment and anger were a good thing really. If he didn't love Emma, it wouldn't bother him as much as it did. The relationship was broken, but not beyond repair, not yet. Hers on the other hand…

Her stomach tightened the moment she and Henry came downstairs, and her eyes landed on Rumpelstiltskin. There was a time that catching a glimpse of him made her glance away with a smirk and a blush. Now it just made her nervous in a way that she'd never experienced.

"Henry…" she glanced up at the sound of Emma's voice and found that her eyes on the boy behind her. But not for long. Henry never responded to her. Instead, the moment that they stepped off the stairs he turned back to her.

"I think I'll go wait in the car," he stated coldly before setting his eyes on the door and walking out on her again.

"Henry…" Mary Margaret and David moved to go after the boy, but she reached out her hand to stop them.

"I wouldn't," she suggested. "He just needs some time…"

Emma hardly moved a muscle at his dismissal and their conversation, but her eyes betrayed her. Shocked, horrified, wounded…she didn't like being away from Henry like this. She would have felt sorry for her but she couldn't when she looked at Rumpelstiltskin. They were infected by the same curse. If he was responsible for his own choice's then so was Emma. She shouldn't have done what she did to Violet, plain and simple. No matter what she'd been trying to do, no matter the purpose behind it…there had to have been a better way.

"Hurts don't it?" a familiar voice questioned leaning against the wall. Blue dress, bow and arrows against her hip, wild red hair, and staring daggers at Emma, looking like she was absolutely enjoying this torture she was going through. "Yer boy out in the world…not knowin' where he is or what he's doin'…that smarts jus' a bit, don't it!" she commented with a smile. All at once she realized why she was there, and she glanced from Merida to Rumple and then to Regina.

"She's who you summoned? She's going to watch Emma?!"

"Aye," Merida answered before Regina could get a word out. "I wasn't so keen on being called in a puff of smoke but once they explained the need to be sure poor defenseless Emma here didn't get hurt…I figured I should repay the favor after she kept a right good eye on me for so long."

"Are you sure this is the best option?" David questioned looking at Rumple skeptically.

"Absolutely," he confirmed, the sword in his hand again she noticed. "You can trust her, despite what she says, she's a woman of honor. She'll keep your daughter safe from harm."

"I feel like it would be a better idea to simply remove the cuff and allow me to help."

"Not a chance," Regina smiled. "Merida isn't here to hurt you, just to make sure you stay put and out of danger. With no magic, it's a task that Merida can easily take care of-"

"Happily!" Merida added with a joyful grin. It made her nervous, but she didn't dare question Rumple since everyone else looked just as nervous as she did. There was no need to make it worse.

Regina ignored her then stepped forward. "And just for extra measure…" she watched as Regina put her hands over Emma's wrist, over the cuff. She held her breath, fearful for a moment that she was going to actually remove the cuff and once look at Emma's face, and she knew she wasn't alone in her thoughts. Emma's eyes widened in shock and anticipation…only to fall when Regina stepped away, and the cuff was still in place. "What are you doing?" Mary Margaret asked.

"Strengthening the cuff so that no one can be tempted by your pleas," she answered looking at Emma. "It'll only come off at my magic now. Either I take it off of you or no one does. And now…we need to leave."

"Where are you planning on going?" Mary Margaret questioned as Regina fetched her coat.

"I need to keep Robin and the baby safe. Zelena is on the loose and Gold isn't the only one that needs protecting. I'll join you as soon as I'm certain they're alright."

And with that Regina appeared to forget that Emma and Merida were even in the house. And so did everyone else. The five of them gathered coats and scarfs and gloves and canes and even swords and went straight to the door. Mary Margaret and David left first, not surprising considering she knew they were probably itching to talk to Henry who was out of sight, probably waiting in the car for them. She, Rumple, and Regina followed quickly after them down the walkway…

No, not all of them.

Behind her she heard Regina shut the door, locking Emma and Merida inside and Rumple…all at once she realized that he wasn't by her side like he'd been nearly all morning. She spun around and found him standing on the porch, cane in one hand, sword in another. His stillness didn't stop Regina from rushing off, but she didn't understand and turned back to him.

"Rumple, what's wrong?" she questioned. The look on his face…he looked like he had yesterday after he defeated Merida. But instead of allowing her voice to shake him and move toward her his feet stayed firmly planted where they were on Regina's porch. "Aren't you coming?" she asked, motioning to the group, trying her best to get him to move.

"I'm afraid my preparations for this battle can't be found in a book," he answered. Preparations for battle…wasn't he listening? He wasn't going to have to battle, they were going to figure out how to save him, all of them! They were going back to search through the chronicles, the chronicles he insisted had answers so that they could fix this! There was no need to duel.

"Well-bu-but this-this was your idea!" she reasoned as she marched back up the stairs to stand beside him. Why didn't he believe in it? It didn't inspire much hope if he didn't have faith in his own idea.

"For you…and the others…there might be some way to protect yourself, but for me…" he shook his head, and the smile he gave…it was doubting. "I've spent an entire life running away from battles. Time to stop."

This was his plan, why he wanted them to go to the library and look through the chronicles again. It wasn't so they would find something to stop Hook, or figure out what Nimue was supposed to help them with, it was so they'd find something to protect themselves when it was too late. When he….

No. No, not this again! It was the same thing as last night when he'd stopped her going after Zelena. There was a difference between being brave and going uselessly to death. This was the latter! There was no need for it. He was already a hero! There was no need to go pointlessly to battle and risk his life when she could see how much he'd changed.

"You don't have anything to prove anymore. You saved me from Merida!" she argued. "You're a hero now!"

"But that doesn't erase a lifetime of cowardice, nothing can!" he fought back.

Why was he doing this? He was the smartest man she knew why was he suddenly insisting that he be stupid?! Because of her? Because of what she'd said? Was this her fault?

"Belle…I know I've hurt you in unforgivable ways, but I also know that not wanting me to die isn't the same as wanting to be with me. So if I survive this, I want to do better by you. I want to love you in the way I never could before with honesty and courage. Let me be the man you deserve, the man I swore on my son's grave I would be."

They were here again. The place they'd been last night and in the early hours this morning. Her heart was racing, her blood was absolutely boiling, she worried tears in her eyes might betray her. She wanted that. Everything that he'd said now and last night and this morning she wanted all of it! And there was a time that she believed it was a gift, but she'd learned now. She'd been burned by him not just once or twice but too many times to count. She'd placed her heart back together so many times she worried that the glue wouldn't hold it together if it so much as cracked again. She wanted everything he said, but she also didn't want to hurt again. And this felt like hurting. Him before her, asking her to take a leap of faith…it was painful because she'd taken that leap before and dashed herself against the rocks at the bottom of the cliff.

But they were here. No books or tables or Mary Margaret to interrupt them. She didn't know how to respond without running away. "I uh…I-I don't know what to say…" she finally admitted sadly.

He turned his head away from her at her words. But he didn't look as broken as he had when she'd changed the subject this morning. "Don't say anything," he finally suggested with a shake of his head. Say nothing. Odd how her stomach turned over in guilt at those words. She glanced up to tell him they needed to go but found that he was already stepping away, giving her the air, the oxygen she needed to think clearly.

"If I win…if I win I'll go to the well, where we were married," he suggested stepping off the porch but still holding her gaze. "And if you meet me there…I'll know how you feel."

She opened her mouth but once more words eluded her as fear seeped into her bones and paralyzed her muscles. But this time, she didn't need words. The ultimatum was before her, and now Rumple, cane and sword and all stalked away from her into Regina's yard, leaving her with a choice she neither wanted nor needed at a time like this.

* * *

 **Okay, we all know what is coming, but it's killing me, can I take a minute to point out two more really stupid things they did here! Of course, I can it's my authors note. First of all, Merida. ::Flails madly:: Where the heck did she come from?! The show never actually explains this so it just leaves us thinking that despite the fact that Regina has no memories of her she left the house, ran out, got Merida, came back, left Merida to babysit, left again...really?! That was possibly the stupidest thing I've seen! No wait...it gets better! Where the hell is Rumple going at the end of this scene? Has anyone actually thought about that? He has this talk with Belle then just kind of saunters off into Regina's yard. He doesn't go down the steps to the street, he wings a left into the yard. Where's he going?! Is he going to commune with the bushes in the backyard?! Everyone else is piling into cars to go back into town, you'd think he'd hitch a ride with someone because the next time we see him, surprise, he's in town! It's like he just said "Yeah I know we're all going to the same place but I think I'll walk, not like we're on a deadline or anything! Ridiculous! There. I think I'm done. I think I feel better now. And that rant didn't even include the fact that Henry doesn't leave the house with them despite the fact that he's in the library, or the fact that I had to do something about the cuff because they rewrote their own mythology again! #sorrynotsorry. See, I think that at the heart of it, this is what gets me about this season. At some point, the creators stopped caring. They stopped treating all their charcters like people, and just started treating them as characters. They took away their depth and what made them human and smart and relatable and instead gave them cool walks off into the sunset and places in scenes that made no sense. They built up drama, then never properly brought it back down. The mistakes in this scene, that is what bothers me about this season.**

 **Thank you, Kathryn Claire O' Connor, Grace5231973, Fox24, Carlyle23, Ladybugsmomma, and Teresa Martin, for the really awesome reviews you left me on the last chapter. They made me so happy considering that I didn't like that chapter as much. I was thrilled to hear it wasn't as awful as I thought it was. I hope the same can be said about some of these upcoming scenes. I've got a tough task ahead of me, but if I've done my job right, then the task should already be half accomplished. Just on the horizon, we've got another important talk with Neal coming up! But that's not next. Next, I'm fixing more of the problems with this episode. So, you can look forward to more commentary on this episode because...ugh...I just can't even! Peace and Happy Reading.**


	51. Going Nowhere Fast

If it weren't for David's call, asking her if she was coming, she would have been content to stand on Regina's steps in that moment for the rest of her life, to never face the hours she had ahead of her and never think about what he wanted her to think about. It hurt. It was terrifying. It made her want to cry, to create a river that she could simply swim through and get away from his words and his suggestion and his horrible idea of a choice. Meet me at the well and choose me or don't. It was a choice that she knew she'd have to make eventually, but why now? She felt like time would make all the difference why did he want her to make the choice now? Couldn't they simply start slow and see where things took them? That was the safer route. Couldn't she just stay here on Regina's porch forever? Couldn't she just never make her choice and live in this terrible and confusing world of in between?

No, because quite simply the world didn't stop for her. "Belle you coming, we need to get a move on!" David called up the walkway. Move on. If only he knew...

She hollered that she was on her way, wiped a stray tear from her eye as she moved down to meet them and-

"Where's Rumpelstiltskin?" he questioned.

"He uh…h-he-he just had an errand to run. He'll meet us there."

David and Mary Margaret exchanged glances that told her they probably knew what his "errand" was. But they didn't say anything, they didn't argue or try to stop it or ask her if she was alright! They just got into their car and left. Regina's car was already gone. So that left…

Henry leaned against the passenger door of her car looking at his cell phone. Her? Out of everyone going Henry wanted to go with her? Was it because she found the gesture touching that tears gathered in her eyes? Or was the day, even this early in the morning, just too much for her?

The pair of them drove back to the library. It was five minutes of silence, but oddly enough it was probably the first five minutes of the day that she felt perfectly comfortable and unworried, even about the terrible choice she'd been left with. Having Henry around was nice. He didn't want to talk, she didn't want to talk, no one forced a conversation that wasn't necessary. It was a relief. Almost like when she and Neal had lived together. Odd. Despite the fact that she'd been so consumed with grief she could barely think straight, more often than not she looked back on those days with Neal as the best days of her life. That seemed to say something. She just didn't know what, or she was afraid to say what.

When they arrived at the library, David pulled the trunk of Chronicles out of the trunk for her, and they moved into the library to begin their work. Or Rumple's work. She couldn't tell which anymore. His plan was different than what he'd told them to do. They weren't looking for information on Nimue anymore, they had to find some way to protect themselves against her and Hook and possibly even Emma if things got bad. They were looking for a weakness to exploit.

"Remember, we're looking for information on Nimue that might help us find some way to protect ourselves and Rumpelstiltskin. We're looking for any kind of weakness, loophole...anything!"

"And how are these books going to help us do that exactly?" Mary Margaret asked taking a seat at the table and looking at the pile of books she was unloading from the trunk in front of her.

"They're written by the Dark Ones," she breathed coming across the old ones at the bottom, the old ones that were written in foreign language so old it was going to take her all afternoon just to translate one. "Henry I'm going to need you to grab some books for me in the stacks alright."

"Wait…" Mary Margaret shrilled picking up the book closest to her. "They're written by a Dark One…would a Dark One really write down their weaknesses?"

She sighed, trying to hide the fact that she'd been worried about the exact same thing. "They're journals…they weren't meant for eyes like ours, and Rumple and Nimue and a few others were exceptions. Most weren't Dark Ones for long. While they were just learning their craft, it's possible they slipped up. Anything might help us, a random observation, something they notice about themselves…anything."

"Anything…" David breathed taking a seat besides his wife.

And so it began. Her eyes stung, her lids felt heavy, words blurred together, but she read. She read the difficult ones, Mary Margaret took the two they found in languages she recognized, and David handled what he could. Henry didn't participate with them. The one time he'd made a motion to sit down and pick up a book David had slapped his hand down over it and said "I don't think that's the best idea."'

"Why?" Henry asked. "I'm the author."

"Being the author doesn't give you a free pass to read whatever you want and some of the things in these books they're…pretty graphic."

"I can handle it."

"Henry," she quickly inserted digging down into the bottom of her pocket for her library keys. "In my back room, I need a book…can you get it for me." It was a silly excuse, but it was enough to distract him from reading without making him feel like a child. And it worked. She gave him the title and description of the book and sent him to work. When he came back she asked him to find things for her in that book, what she was sure was bound to be safe for him to look at. The others followed suit sending him on errands to get other books until he seemed to get the idea and didn't return. She felt bad for him, but she knew it was best. This kind of thing…it just wasn't right for a teenage boy. She wasn't even sure it was right for her!

On and on the pages went and more and more of her concentration was drained. She tried to focus, tried to find the flaws that he'd tried to tell her she had to locate but while this was new for Mary Margaret and David it wasn't new to her. She'd already searched these chronicles, and she knew, even if she'd been looking for a spell or a plan then, if she had seen Nimue's name anywhere she would have stopped to read it! There was nothing here. She felt like it was just an excuse to keep her and the others busy until…

Until…

Until noon. Until Rumple went off to the duel that she now knew he wanted to go to. Until she'd arrive at the well and found it empty or found him standing there victorious and the roll in her stomach told her she really didn't know which was worse.

No. That was a lie. She knew which was worse. She didn't know what would happen at the well, but she knew that what terrified her most of all was arriving there and discovering that he wasn't there. That Hook had won and Rumple was…

For the millionth time she sighed and hung her head in her hands.

How was he supposed to defeat Hook? How was he supposed to defeat a Dark One? He could barely walk, and Hook was out for blood! His soul was pure, he was a hero, but that didn't mean that he was fit enough to triumph over a centuries-old pirate carrying a grudge and more Dark Magic than anyone else in the town, except of course for Emma who couldn't use it at the moment!

Was there really any point in worrying about what she should do at the well?

 _"Course there is, you always have to hope,"_ Neal whispered in her head.

Hope. She wouldn't call the emotions that she got from thinking about what would happen if they both showed up at that well hopeful.

 _"And doesn't that make it worth thinking about?"_

"What's that?" her head popped up at David's question and she found his eyes moving around the room as if he was looking for something.

"What?!" she asked.

"That noise!" she held her breath and listened carefully. It was a hum, gears grinding like-

"That's the elevator!" she cried identifying it and getting out of her seat. She had no idea who was in the elevator, but nothing good every came out of it. David and Mary Margaret trailed behind her as she dashed out to the entryway and looked at the elevator, suddenly alive! "It's going to the top!" she realized.

"Well, can't you get it back down?" Mary Margaret questioned.

"No the controls in the elevator override what happens down here," David corrected. Mary Margaret looked over at him with confusion. How had he known that? "Not my first rodeo with this thing," he explained simply.

She didn't argue, just acknowledged that they should prepare for the worst now that it had stopped. She just used the controls to summon it back to them but just like with the Snow Queen it wouldn't budge. Whoever was up there wasn't coming down any time soon. "We need to get Henry and leave here, call Regina maybe she can use her magic and-"

"Wait! Henry. Where's Henry?!" Mary Margaret said suddenly looking around.

She shook her head. "Probably in the back room, I sent him there-"

"Over an hour ago," David corrected. "He could be anywhere now he could be-"

The sound of Mary Margaret's phone ringing silenced all of them and they looked at her eager for news and help and answers all at the same time. But they watched as her brows furrowed in confusion for a moment and she turned and looked around the library.

"Mary Margaret?" David questioned. She only shook her head and pressed a button on her cell phone.

"Henry?!" she questioned.

"Don't worry, everything is okay," the boy's voice came…from on the phone. She knew this library better than anybody. There were no stray echoes coming from anywhere at least, not on this level. No…that voice was clearly over the phone, which meant Henry…

"Henry…where are you?!" Mary Margaret demanded as she pressed her ear to the crack in the elevator.

"With mom at home," he answered. He was being honest, there was no sound from upstairs. And the twinge of fear she'd felt at the word "with mom" died at "at home". He was with Emma, but he was at Regina's house. He'd left them to go see Emma? After everything that had happened…

Hours ago. Her eyes landed on a clock, and she realized that they'd been here all morning. It was close to noon. They'd been at this for hours, Rumple's duel was right on the horizon…and Henry was gone. But not missing.

"What are you doing there?" Mary Margaret asked with tension in her voice, like she wanted to yell and scream at her grandson, but couldn't bring herself to actually do it.

"We're getting Merida, everything is fine. We found the dreamcatchers. We're going to drop them at the campsite then we're going to get mom and Robin and go to her office. You should meet us there." She heard a low tone talk over the phone, but she couldn't make out the words. Only Henry when he suddenly said. "Alright, we've got to go, we'll meet you at the office."

"Henry?!"

"Henry no!"

But there was a click on the other end as the phone disconnected. Mary Margaret and David stared at each other with wide eyes.

"How did he get out of here without us noticing?"

"Was he with Emma?"

"Did they say they found the dreamcatchers?"

After a quiet moment, the couple unanimously sprang into action, going back into the other room to fetch their things. "He said they'd be at Regina's office." Together they pulled on coats and gloves again, leaving everything behind as they headed for the door and-

"Belle!" Mary Margaret called across the library. She turned in her seat to find the woman nearly at the door looking back at her from where she hadn't yet moved. "Aren't you coming?"

Those words, exactly what she'd said to Rumple. How odd that the answer was about to be the same. "Y-you go on ahead…" she urged glancing up at the clock. "If they've really found the catchers let me know, but I'm going to stay here and keep working."

Again the pair looked like there was so much that they'd like to say, but instead, they just looked at each other, resigned themselves and left her alone to check on their grandson.

* * *

 **Because just...ugh! Are they even thinking about what they write? So...there is no explanation and we're just left to assume that no one noticed Henry's absence? Really?! No, it gets worse! Emma has no magic so we're supposed to believe that not only did they not notice Henry went missing, but they also didn't hear Emma sneak into the library, sneak Henry out of the library, then sneak Henry back into the library, and go into the clock tower, which involves the super loud elevator. Then instead of doing the logical thing at a time like this and running down the stairs and saying "Mary Margaret and David, guess what, we've got the dream catchers lets get our memories back and put this all together fast!" instead they said, "yeah you know instead of doing this now, let's call everyone, get them together at the mayor's office, where no one is, let's leave Belle out because who wants her around, we'll invite Merida instead despite the fact that she has to walk and probably has no idea where the mayor's office is, and instead we'll get our memories back an hour later in a super cool looking scene and say 'oh my goodness we have to hurry'"...yeah... FFNet doesn't have emojis but if it did you'd find me, glaring at the producers and even the writers because really?! I don't know what they were thinking with 5x10. Honestly. I had to do something about this scene. I just couldn't leave it as it was. The good news is that after they find the dreamcatchers Emma gets her magic back, so I can let them use that to pop from one place to another, collecting random people, and solving a whole lot of problems and holes A &E left. Again, you're welcome A&E. **

**Thank you, Grace5231973, Fox24, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews on the last chapter. I'm sorry that this has become my therapy time. There really is no good way to get it out, you know. But you all are awesome in just giving me pats on the back and saying "we feel your pain". I'm glad that I'm not alone in these issues. The one reward in all of this is that Neal is back in the next chapter with an important conversation that I hope will go a long way in explaining what is coming up next. Let's see what we can do. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	52. It's Not You It's Me

The library was quiet. Henry was gone, the Charmings were gone, even Rapunzel was gone. By her own design, she readily admitted the girl was gone! But what she wouldn't give right now, in this time of quiet and uncertainty, to simply have a friend.

A friend.

She took a deep breath and did what she'd never actually done on purpose before. She laid her head down on the useless books before her, closed her eyes and pictured the library exactly as it was, books and all…with only one difference.

"Rough night?" Neal commented sitting on a table across the room so that his feet dangled in the air. She sighed and imagined herself setting her cheek against her hand in exhaustion as her only answer. "Oh…on second thought maybe a rough week?" She raised her eyebrows at him. "Weeks?!"

Finally, she nodded. Rough weeks…weeks of turmoil, weeks of choices, weeks of stress, weeks she couldn't even remember! And now she was supposed to think about the weeks ahead? The hours ahead?

"How am I supposed to think about the future when I can't get the past off my mind?" she demanded at once.

Neal reeled back. "Getting right to the point today huh?"

She shook her head. "That's the problem, I don't know the point, Neal. I don't know what I'm supposed to think or feel…or even what to do. What should I do?"

"I don't know, what should you do?"

She glared at him. "I'm not in the mood for riddles today," she insisted.

Neal huffed at that. "You're kidding, right. You're talking to me…this entire scenario is nothing but a riddle you've created. You made it…you may as well play."

She may as well play. Rumple's riddles, her riddles…what was the difference anymore. Neal was right, she was already playing whether she wanted to or not.

"Rumple wants to start over again," she told Neal.

"And you don't?"

"I don't know…I don't know that I'm ready to jump into this again."

"Why not just tell him you're not ready yet?" he questioned, but the tone wasn't exactly inquiring, it was as if he already knew the answer. The reason for that was easy enough.

"Because I don't know if I'm ever going to be ready, Bae," she whispered hating the words coming out of her mouth because while she knew they were true, she knew they weren't the only true ones. "But I don't know if I'm ever not going to be ready either! I just…"

She didn't know what "she just", her mind splintered off into a thousand different directions from "just". With, without, past, present, future…future was the haziest.

"What do you want Belle?" he questioned from across the room

What would she want? She wanted the issue to be gone! She wanted to stop hurting and being lied to. She wanted to have more time to make this choice. She wanted Rumple to stay away from Killian. She wanted Neal back, she wanted them to have a chance to be a family. In the end, what supposed what she really wanted was to turn the clock back to that moment everyone had come back from Neverland and point out how odd Henry had been acting. Maybe then everything would have been better. Maybe she could save them, their marriage, Bae…all of it.

"I want to go back in time," she finally answered. "I want to start over."

"Well…what do you need to get what you want?"

She snorted. "Heart, brain, courage, newborn…something that represents all four elements of magic…"

"Clever," Neal smirked. "But be serious."

She was afraid that he'd suggest something like that because if she couldn't be funny or use humor, then she was left with no other alternative than to be serious and tell the truth. And the truth…it was scary.

She felt her mouth twist and turn and as the words came to her. "I need to be different…" she squeaked as tears gathered in her eyes.

"Wait…how did we go from talking about you and my dad to talking about just you?"

"Because…" she swallowed and tried desperately to control her lungs gasping for air. "Because Rumple's not the same person he once was…but I'm not either, Neal. I'm…I'm damaged. He damaged me."

She wiped her eyes. Neal waited patiently for her to be done and when she finally looked up at him he nodded urging her forward. "How exactly are you damaged?"

She laughed, memories of months ago taking over her mind. Waking up and finding him gone, smiling when he came into the room, finding reasons to be close to him, their simple interactions, trusting him…it was months ago but she felt like it was decades ago. She still loved him, but instead of wanting to be closer to him he just made her nervous and scared because all that time he'd been hiding something too big for her to ever stomach from her, something that still made her sick to think of. The truth was that she might have finally been burned too much to ever recover and be that person again.

"When we were first married…before we were married I was so in love with him, so blindly in love with him. I trusted him. I trusted people because I knew that if I could trust Rumple, then I could trust anyone but now…"

"You don't trust him anymore."

"I don't trust anyone anymore all because he betrayed me!" she corrected. "I feel like I'm walking around just waiting for the next disappointment, the next bad thing to happen because if I can't trust him then who can I trust? He broke my heart so, so bad Bae. I still love him and I've been through enough to know that I will probably always love him in some way, that I can't be in a relationship with anyone else besides him because the idea of having anything other than what we have would just be cheating but I don't know if I can ever love him the way I once did, before all this happened. I can love him all I want, but if I can't trust him, if I have to question where he is every second of every day, if I wonder every time he tells me something if it's true or not, if I move away every time he comes close to me…can I really love him the way that lovers should? Is that really the way we want to live?"

"You were fine when he saved you from Merida. And after he pulled the sword from the stone."

"Yeah because I didn't have time to think. I'm fine so long as I don't think about it, but I can't go through life without thinking. That was how I got hurt the last time."

"He's different now."

She nodded and felt her tears pool again. "Yes…but so am I now. And if this was years ago, before he'd hurt me and he was who he is now then I would probably be able to make this work but I just don't know that I can anymore," she cried. "He…he's destroyed me! The Darkness inside him it just...it wiped out everything I was and he let it happen and..."

"Hey," Neal whispered finally coming off the table as she dissolved into tears. He walked over and knelt down beside her knees and took her hands. "You are a fighter, you always have been. And you and I both know that you are not destroyed. Damaged maybe, but not destroyed."

"So what do I do?" she cried looking down into her memory of his eyes. They were so much like Henry's.

"Well…the way I see it you have a few options."

"Options…Neal, either I go to the well or I don't!"

"That's not entirely true," he whispered. "You could not go to the well-"

"No!" she insisted right away. "No, I can't do that to him. I can't let him think…I owe him more than that, more than nothing."

" _Or_ ," Neal insisted. "You go, and you tell him it's not as simple as black and white. You tell him you need more time. Be honest. Tell him you are not in a place to start over right now. It's not him…it's you."

That seemed…surprisingly simple. But still not exactly what she knew Rumple was expecting. He wanted them to start then and there! She wasn't ready to start. But she wasn't ready to end either!

"Does he love you?" Neal questioned cutting into her thoughts.

She smirked through her tears and nodded. That was the problem. They loved each other. And it was because of that love that it felt like they were doomed to always hurt each other. It was like Henry's anger toward Emma. If he didn't love her, then he wouldn't be so irritated with her. She loved Rumple. And he loved her. And that was what made this so difficult! Because if she could fix it all, she would…in a heartbeat!

"If he loves you then he'll understand, right?" Neal questioned. "If he loves you then he'll understand that you need some time to get yourself back together."

"But what if I don't? What if I can't 'put myself back together' or what if I do and I realize that I can't…I don't want to give him false hope."

"Do you love him?" Neal questioned with a smirk. It was nearly the same question, and her frustration felt palpable, but the point of it was made.

"Yes," she whispered. "I will always love him."

"Then you tell him you need time to figure yourself out, if he loves you then he'll want you to take all the time in the world, and then the hard work begins."

She swallowed as she watched him. "Hard work?" she questioned.

Neal nodded. "Then you have to figure yourself out…nothing harder than that."

* * *

 **::Stands back, takes a breath, and waits for the opinions:: Here was the big problem I had with the well scene. I thought of it as a lack of communication. Rumple says "Come if yes, don't if no". But Belle says "it's neither yes nor no" and has too big a conscious to not show up because Rumple does mean something to her. Not showing up isn't an option, but an outright yes isn't an option for where she is either. And we'll cover this a bit in the next chapter too, but that scene also had a lot of emotion to it and when a person is emotional, things don't necessarily come out the way they ought. Personally, I think that this chapter does a lot for what comes next, but I'm a little biased. I also know that this is, in a way, a "to be continued..." moment because the inner dialogue for the next chapter is really very important too. So in that case, to be continued...**

 **Thank you, Kathryn Claire O'Connor, Grace5231973, Teresa Martin, Fox24, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews you've left me. It's hard to believe there is not much more of this fiction left. And boy is there a lot to come in a little amount of time. I've got a plot hole to clean up, a friendship between Belle and Rapunzel to begin, a final and favorite conversation with Neal, and of course something important to come in the end. Ya'll have stuck with me this long, let's do this thing, shall we? Peace and Happy Reading!**


	53. The Unpleasant Truth

By the time she was ready to open her eyes it was past noon and she suddenly faced a new fear that made her want Neal back more than anything. She could go to the well, even with the plan that Neal-or her psyche-had helped her to devise it was still terrifying. Knowing what she needed to do didn't change the fact that right now Rumpelstiltskin was probably on board a ship, facing off against a vengeful pirate turned Dark One, who was immortal and happened to have Excalibur. And all he had was a cane, a limp, and a sword. There was no promise that he was even going to survive long enough for them to have their conversation.

For a moment, just after she'd locked the chronicles up in the back room of the library she kept her magic books, she wondered if she should go to the dock instead, if maybe there was enough time to try and stop him, to convince him it wasn't necessary. If she managed to do that then maybe they wouldn't have to go to the well in the first place! But what else were they going to do? If she stopped him, she still hadn't found anything to stop Hook, anything that could protect the two of them from coming after them. It was up to him now. And her job…

Her job was to make her way to the well.

She shook the entire way as she walked through the streets of Storybrooke. Her steps as she moved through the forest were slow and staggered, dizzy even. She wasn't sure what she was more afraid of. Showing up and not finding him there or showing up and finding him there. Her mind made up, with every step she grew to accept that the conclusion she'd come to was the right thing to do. It was going to be difficult and painful to admit and explain but…what he'd done to her was also difficult to listen to and even more painful to discover. Besides this was the right thing for them. It had to be. The hesitation and distance she felt herself putting between them…it was wrong. She had to fix that, she had to find the person she'd once been and she was sure that she couldn't do that with him. And a little change in their usual habits…well, it couldn't hurt.

They were stuck. They were stuck in a terrible and awful cycle, a cycle that killed her a little bit more each time they made the loop. They got together, he lied to her, he broke her heart, she forgave him, and it all started all over again. As much as she loved him she had to believe that love shouldn't be that way. Maybe this was a turning point, a moment that she could break the cycle. Maybe she could stay away long enough to work on herself as Bae had said, figure out who she was, what she wanted...maybe he could learn about himself too and then they could return to each other someday better than they were now and ready to pursue something healthier than they'd had.

But she knew today wasn't that day.

She kept her head down and rehearsed her speech in her head as she climbed the mountain and tried not to think about the fact that the last time she'd taken this walk it had been night time and she'd been dressed in white, happier than she'd ever known she could feel. Those thoughts left a sour taste in her mouth and only seemed to be more confirmation that she was right.

Her stomach twisted and turned with every step. She didn't even know what she'd do if she arrived at the well and he wasn't there. Cry? Run to the docks? Feel relieved?

No! Absolutely not! Not seeing him there would not make her feel relieved. She would be devastated. She'd feel simply awful. She'd feel…

When she finally arrived she closed her eyes, took a breath, and finally picked up her head.

He was there.

He didn't see her; his back was to her and on the well, the placed they'd been married was a shiny object she recognized as Excalibur. She should have felt relieved and perhaps part of her did, but not as much as she'd expected to. What she felt at the sight of him was a complex emotion. He'd done it. Not only had he walked away the winner, but he also held Excalibur. What did that mean? Was Killian dead? What would happen to Emma now if he was gone? Could she even bear to think about such a thing right now? The urge to turn around and run was strong. It would be so much easier than the words she knew she would have to muster. He'd said if she showed up he'd know how she felt. She could leave, let him figure it out on his own. But he deserved more than that. Running wasn't what she felt. She loved him she did! She just didn't love the idea of them as she once had. She hoped she would one day. But somehow she felt that day wasn't going to be today.

"You uh…you did it!" she finally managed to comment. He left the sword where it was on the well as he turned to face her and what she saw simultaneously made her want to run out of fear and hurt. No cane. She didn't know how that happened. But her first thought was that he had magic again and if he had magic again she wanted to be far away. But the look on his face…oh she wasn't sure if she could do this, even with her prepared speech. "You won!" she commented locking her arms to her sides and stumbling over her own feet.

"And you came!" he breathed so happily it automatically brought tears to her eyes. She hadn't thought this through, hadn't thought about what he'd think if she came here to do this, how she was about to let him down, how cruel it would seem. Maybe she shouldn't have come. Maybe it would have been better to let him go home upset and then go to him and give him hope later. But now it was too late. He was already leaping off the pedestal the well was on and reaching for her. "Oh Belle! I'm so glad you're here!"

She tried to take a step back, to escape his touch because she knew it would burn before she even touched him. But she couldn't escape him. It was too late in every way and now she had no choice but to do this.

"I'm ready to do this right, put the past behind us!"

"Rumple! Rumple!" she interrupted pushing him away as he tried to draw her closer. She closed her eyes and took another breath, remembering the speech she'd come up with. She could do this. She had to. "This isn't easy for me…" she began. She hoped those words might deter him, force him to lower his expectations, but his smile stayed. This might just be the most painful moment of their life. "I love you! And some part of me will always love you. But…you have broken my heart too many times, there's just too much broken trust!"

His face fell. His eyes and forehead wrinkled in confusion at her words and he shook his head at her declaration and seemed to finally register what was happening wasn't what he'd planned. "But I've changed!" he argued fairly. "My heart…it's pure now!"

Her heart was racing. In her speech, she'd never planned on what would happen if he resisted her or interrupted. And he was right. His argument was fair for him. But so was hers. And she'd done so much for him in her life, this was something she had to do for herself.

"Yeah-yeah you have and it is! Oh and you're-you're the man I always hoped you would be," she smiled because she didn't want to disparage him. His change was good! She wanted it to stick. But she also had to have one of her own. He was who she'd always wanted him to be. She wasn't who she'd always wanted to be.

"Then why are you doing this now?" he chuckled. "Now we have a chance to make this work!" His smile returning as if he thought he could change her mind. He couldn't. She couldn't let him. She wouldn't. Partly because of what he'd said. She wanted to be chosen. This wasn't being chosen. She'd taken the magic from him, he had nothing to choose now. And their relationship…she should have been number one with or without magic. She didn't want to have to make it work, she'd been trying to make it work from the beginning and the truth was that this way he couldn't undo anything he'd done. And she was so, so tired.

"I don't know that I want to make it work," she argued back. He looked hurt, but she suddenly felt just as stung as she'd felt that night at the town line. Why did it take the expulsion of magic for him to want to make their relationship work?! Why couldn't he have tried the moment they started here months ago?! Why couldn't he have let her chase the dark way?

The words sank in, he looked horrified as he backed away from her as if he could pretend this wasn't happening if only he refused to acknowledge it, but that wasn't the point of all this! She had to remember that! Those thoughts she'd just had, the feeling of hurt and brokenness and the questions about what she wanted with him that was why she was doing this! She didn't know if she wanted to make it work or not, it was true, but that wasn't what she'd planned on telling him. She had to get back to that.

"But I do know that if I'm going to try to figure that out, I need to do that on my own!" she inserted quickly stepping away before he could grab her again. "Look…" she breathed, glancing down at her feet once more to collect her thoughts because this wasn't going at all the way she'd planned. It was her! He was right. She was wrong! She wanted him to know that! She wanted him to know that there was still a chance…just not today. The work to be done wasn't for him. It was for her. "I have spent too many years trying to mend your heart. Now…I-I need to protect mine!" she cried. She was weak; she was broken and fragile and damaged, and he'd contributed to that. She couldn't go back to him, things couldn't be the way they once were, not like this. It would be too difficult to heal herself while he was whole. And she didn't know if she could be with him and not look over her shoulder, not keep expecting something bad to happen. It was an awful way to live. Until she knew anything for certain, she had to be on her own. And she needed to do it right now before she allowed herself to give into him once more. Eyes full of tears she managed to turn away from him.

"Belle please!" she heard him gasp. She stumbled, feeling like a casualty of war, nearly as shocked as a traumatized soldier she'd met once but it was his words that propelled him forward. If she turned and went back to him like this it would be for him, the cycle would continue, sand she would wind up hurt again. Or maybe she wouldn't! But the fact that her immediate conclusion was that she'd be hurt again told her that this was the logical choice to make.

He let her go. He didn't follow, didn't try to catch her, didn't argue, just let her walk back down the mountain until she reached a place that was far enough away when she finally dared to look back over her shoulder he and the well were both gone. It was only then that she allowed herself to sink down against a tree and put her head in her hands. Her brain told her that though their conversation hadn't gone at all the way she'd hoped it would, this was logical. Her heart told her that she'd been wrong. She wasn't protecting her heart from him, and he wasn't the danger to it anymore. She was. This time, she'd broken her own heart and had no one to blame for it.

What had she done?

* * *

 **Deep breath and wait for the reviews. How'd I do ya'll? As with everything in Moments, there are reasons that I do everything. I approached this scene the way I did just because in watching this scene, parts of her delivery were very stiff and seemed practiced, while other sentences, like the bit about wanting to make it work, seemed less so, before getting right back to stiff and practiced. So, I went the way that I went, choosing to write in that there was a way that she meant it to go, and then emotion got in the way. Truthfully, I get it, no matter what I do, this scene is just going to suck. I can't fix that. But hopefully, with the chapters that I've put in leading up to this, it all flows just a bit better.**

 **Thank you, thank you, thank you, Tracyjean, Carlyle23, Grace5231973, Fox24, Curly J, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma, for the awesome reviews you left. I'm so thrilled that they chapter was received so well. Now that this scene is over I'm hopeful that the rest of the chapters for this fiction, will be just as liked! Five more ya'll! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	54. Introducing Friendship and Self Care

She didn't know what she was doing. She didn't know what she'd said, couldn't remember why she'd said it, and wasn't sure she was even alive right now. She stayed out in the forest until she was cold, until the sun began to go down and she couldn't sit there any longer and then she'd got up and started walking. Or maybe it was floating. She wasn't really aware of the ground under her feet, just the feeling of moving through the world disconnected from all of it. She walked through town without a sense of where she was going. Before she knew it, the streets were dark, and her hand was on the door of the library.

There was something hanging there on the knob. Something that caught her eye. It was round. Made of twigs and string and beads and feathers…it was a dreamcatcher. Her dreamcatcher? Of course it was hers. She wiped her eyes as she pulled it free of the handle and looked it over. Henry had said that he and Emma had found them, it must have been true then…this must have been the one for her. All her memories, the six weeks that they were in Camelot, she could find out what happened. She didn't have to wonder anymore she could know!

Of course, she needed magic to get to the memories. Magic she didn't have but across the street-

Her gaze darted over to the darkened pawnshop, the place that all their magic was and…suddenly her desire to know faded. She didn't want to go to the pawnshop, she didn't want to take his magic for herself. Not anymore. So what did she want to do?

Her fingers quickly unlocked the library and before she could even remember making the choice she was climbing the stairs, going into her apartment…

And that was really the end of it.

As soon as she was inside, she went to her couch, lay down on her side, curled up so that her legs were pressed against her chest, and cried. She didn't close her eyes. She didn't even want to pretend that Neal was still here, that he could comfort her. Because the truth was that he wasn't. And sooner or later she had to open her eyes and realize that Neal was really gone and she was still here, all by herself on this little couch.

Oh, that truth hurt. It hurt possibly even more than what she'd just done. She didn't want to be alone. She didn't want to be by herself for the rest of her life. But no matter what happened it seemed like that was all that was left for her. Anna and Will were worlds away. Ruby was off somewhere finding a life of her own. Things with her father were never going to be perfect. Rumple wasn't an option. And Neal…Neal was gone. That was the truth. The truth that she'd been avoiding for months because when he'd died she hadn't known how important he was and when she did know she'd never really had the time to grieve and now…

Oh, it hurt. It hurt so much. She turned her face into the cushion under her cheek and sobbed, truly sobbed like she should have been able to months ago. She missed Neal. It had been such a short friendship, but it was possibly the truest and most honest relationship she'd ever had. She missed the way he always understood and was willing to lend a shoulder to cry on. She missed the way he was always on her side. She missed his eyes and his voice and all of him. She could pretend to talk to him in her mind, but it just wasn't the same as having him at her side. And suddenly, in this moment alone, pretending he was around to comfort her seemed like a horrible disservice to him.

A fresh wave of sadness hit her. Her body rocked with her tears so that her belly hurt from all the cramping it was doing as she cried. It hurt, but it felt good at the same time. It was a good kind of hurt. A hurt that she felt like she needed to experience and-

She gasped and sat up when she heard the knob of her door turn. For a moment she panicked and looked around for something that she could use as a weapon against the foreigner. But when her eyes landed on a frying pan in the kitchen she remembered…she didn't live here anymore.

"Belle!" Rapunzel breathed when she and Flynn got into the darkened apartment and saw her on the couch. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

She wished she knew. "I'm sorry I forgot…" she cried standing up and wiping her face. She had to find her things and go. Had she brought any things with her?

"No! No, no, no, what's wrong?!" Rapunzel questioned standing in her way before she could leave.

"Nothing, I'm fine."

"You are not fine, and you aren't leaving here until I know what's wrong with you. Sit back down!" the girl insisted pointing to the place on the couch that she'd been.

There were a million things she could do. Rapunzel might have been taller, but she was also skinnier, if she wanted to leave then she couldn't stop her. But she didn't have it in her to fight. So she sat back down, huddled against the arm of her small couch.

"Flynn…" she waited as Rapunzel turned back to Flynn Rider and led him back to the door. She whispered to him before they finally locked eyes, kissed, hugged and that was it. He whispered something she couldn't hear and she managed to catch her toothy "best day ever!" response before Flynn let himself out, and Rapunzel turned back to her.

She didn't say anything, merely filled the apartment with light, turned to her kitchen, made herself busy, and a couple of minutes later came back with tea. "Now…tell me what's going on."

She looked at her skeptically. The truth was that this had all been difficult even for her to admit to herself she wasn't sure she knew Rapunzel well enough to tell the tale to.

But Rapunzel was confident. She moved from the coffee table to the other side of the couch. "You can tell me, I promise that your secrets are safe with me. And when I promise something…I never, ever go back on that promise. You can tell me. Whatever you say will stay just between the two of us."

It was difficult to tell Rapunzel, but when she remembered what she'd just done, how difficult that had been...suddenly talking to her about it didn't seem as difficult as she thought it was. Besides, what did she really have to loose?

The story came out, everything that had happened since Rumpelstiltskin had gone missing. Finding him here in the library, Merida, the bear, Emma…then everything that had happened today with Hook and Rumple, what they'd tried and failed to do, and what she'd done in the woods. How she feared she'd just ruined something that might have one day been good…

Rapunzel was quiet throughout. She just let her talk. And when she was finished after she'd gone through nearly half a box of tissues, she reached forward and grabbed her hand.

"I'm proud of you…" she muttered.

She sniffed and looked over at her through puffy eyes. "You are? Why?"

Rapunzel smirked as she sat back on the couch. "For as long as I've known you, you've been taking care of others. In the Enchanted Forest, you looked after Rumple and his son, you helped everyone figure out Zelena's plans, kept Snow White's pregnancy a secret…and when we were here you helped me, first, with my brother's locket, and then by helping me get my life back. You spend your days doing research and taking care of everyone, and it's taken its toll. This is something that you are doing for you…and it's about damn time if you ask me."

She knew all that. She knew it was for her and that it was a good thing, it just didn't feel that way. In fact, it was for that very reason that it also felt like a bad thing. "Then why does it feel so awful?"

"Because you love him…and it's not going to be easy being away from him, but you need to do it. And he needs you to do it too. If that's what it takes for the two of you to be together again in a good healthy relationship then won't all this pain be worth it?"

Worth it? Maybe. She didn't know. She didn't know a lot of things. "What am I going to do?" she asked. "I can't go home, not with him around. I can't share a house or a business with him like we used to, I can barely stand to be on the same street. He's been my entire life while I've been in Storybrooke…I don't know what to do now."

Rapunzel nodded. "More reasons why this is a good thing…" she pointed out. "This is going to be good for you," she insisted suddenly. "You'll see. We'll get you to try some different things, get some new hobbies, rediscover some old ones. We can work together in the library again. I'll look after you, make sure that you aren't tempted until you are ready and when you are ready…I'll still be here. You aren't alone. I promise you won't ever be alone in this."

She stared confused at the girl. Those were powerful words. Words that she couldn't understand. She knew that Rapunzel had changed but somehow she'd always seen her as that scared little princess that David had brought home from his adventure. She didn't know this version Rapunzel that well. Or at least not as well as she should. "Why are you doing this? Why are you helping me?"

Rapunzel smiled. "Because months ago a scared, unsure woman walked into a diner expecting to go back to her parent's home and hide in her bedroom. And then you saw me. And now I'm here with an apartment of my own, a steady job that I love, a man that…I can't even put words into how I feel about him. It's all because of you. Because you saw me. Now it's my turn to repay the favor. Please…let me repay the favor."

Suddenly it dawned on her that maybe Rapunzel wasn't wrong. Maybe she was perfectly right! Maybe she'd spent so much time over the last few months taking care of others and focusing on what she'd lost that she hadn't even been able to notice what she'd gained. A friend had been across the street all this time. Maybe it was time to finally embrace that.

* * *

 **Alright, finally we get to that point I promised way back when, that Rapunzel and Belle were going to be good friends. We'll actually see a lot more of it in the next fiction, but for the remainder of the time this fiction has, Rapunzel is going to be an awesome person to have around. She's going to have a good strong individual to lean on during this time that she is really in a vulnerable state.**

 **Thank you TracyJean, Grace5231973, Carlyle23, Fox24, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews on the previous chapter. I know, there was no good way to approach that, but I think you are going to enjoy how I get the two of them back together. The important piece is already in place, did you catch it? Peace and Happy Reading!**


	55. The Opportunity to be Remade

Rapunzel made her dinner. It was nice. She couldn't remember the last time that she'd let someone make her dinner that wasn't a burger and fries or more than three courses. But after she'd shed more tears and cried onto Rapunzel's shoulder for a bit she'd picked her up, taken her into the kitchen, and showed her just how adept she'd become at cooking. She wasn't hungry. She'd spent the day with Flynn and eaten dinner with him, but for her she prepared soft chicken tacos, because it was easy to reheat and save for later, and gave her a liberal glass of red wine.

"These are delicious, thank you!"

"No problem. But if you think that's good wait until you taste my rum cake."

"Rum cake? You've learned how to make rum cake too?!"

She shrugged. "Well…I have a cousin-in-law that really likes to cook, and I guess I inherited the love of it and a few tricks from her. I just never knew it until I had my own place! My family…we met while you were away and she gave me a few recipes to try. You should come out with us one night I'm sure you two would get along wonderfully."

She nodded. "I'd love to. And…I'd love to help you make the rum cake. There was a time I used to love to cook as well."

Rapunzel nodded. "It's settled then. We'll make some goodies together sometime. It'll be-"

A cell phone interrupted her thought, and the pair of them looked over to the coffee table where her bag and the dream catcher still sat.

"Fun…" Rapunzel finally concluded before pushing herself off the counter, brushing crumbs off her hands, and walking over to her bag. She didn't stop her, just watched as the girl pawed her way through her bag and pulled the black cell phone out for her. Rapunzel's face fell as she examined the screen and then glanced over at her. Her eyes said it all and the brief rush of joy she'd felt only moments ago faded.

"It's uh…it's him, isn't it?"

Rapunzel took a breath and then nodded. "Do you want me to tell him not to call?" she questioned.

She opened her mouth to say no…but then thought better of it. After what just happened she really didn't want to talk to him and even though the conversation hadn't gone as she planned, she thought that would have at the very least come across. She didn't want to be the one to repeat it. "That would be nice, thank you."

Rapunzel nodded and turned her back as she flipped open the phone. She held her breath and listened, but she couldn't make any words out on his end. Rapunzel on the other hand...

"Hello?...Yes but this is Rapunzel her assistant…I'm sorry, but she really doesn't want to speak with you at the moment…she really…I'm sorry but she really…Mr. Gold she really doesn't want to speak with you right now. When she's ready, she'll call! No…no I won't but…sure I guess I can take a message…right…right…I'm not sure…I'll tell her, but I won't make promises…okay. Good-bye, Mr. Gold."

She sighed when she snapped the phone closed and glanced over at her. "Is he always so insistent?" she questioned on a frustrated sigh.

She smirked before she remembered that she shouldn't because she knew better than anyone just how pushy he could be. "Yes," she nodded. "What did he want?"

Rapunzel took another breath as she walked back into the kitchen and set her phone on the counter beside her. "Do you really want to know?"

Did she? Honestly? Yes. She did. She wished that she didn't want to know, but she knew that she did deep down. After everything that had happened today her first thought was that something was wrong. Hook might have been defeated and without Excalibur, but Emma was still out there, the curse remained and while Rapunzel now knew what had happened between the two of them no one else did. If something had gone wrong and the others had called Rumple needing her…she had to know.

"What did he want?" she repeated.

"He asked to see you in the shop as soon as possible. Use the back door, stay off the streets."

The first part was not really an odd request but the second part…that she couldn't pinpoint. "How did he sound?"

Rapunzel furrowed her brow as she picked a few pieces of meat out of the pan before her. "Kind of desperate actually…but that doesn't mean you have to go. If you want me to, I can go for you."

She shook her head. She didn't exactly like this, but she knew that sending someone in her place wasn't the answer. If anyone was going to figure out what this was, it was going to be her, and that was the end of it. The end of it…she didn't want to, especially after what had happened at the well a few hours ago…but this could be the end of it. She'd go over, find out what he wanted, tell him she really needed him to leave her alone and if the others called to tell them to call her themselves…and that would be it.

"Are you sure?" Rapunzel questioned as she put her coat and scarf back on.

She nodded. "If I'm not back in five minutes come in after me?"

Rapunzel nodded. "I'll be your search and rescue party."

With that assurance, she left the library apartment, but left her bag and the dreamcatcher behind, a promise to Rapunzel that she'd come back when she was finished, and it was time to figure things out. She didn't listen to him on her way over. "Use the back door and stay off the streets…" she had no idea what it was about, but she made sure to look both ways before she left the library, out one of her own back doors, then hustled across the street and down until she arrived at the alleyway that she needed to use the backdoor. When she got there, she glanced in the window. The shade was partially drawn, but she spied him inside easily, pacing in the back, holding a small bottle tapping it nervously between his fingers. He was-

She quickly turned away when he glanced over at the door. She pushed her back against the outer wall and closed her eyes and held her breath as if she could be a chameleon and blend into the wall had he seen her. Maybe this was a mistake. Maybe she shouldn't have come. Maybe she should just go. But…but what was the bottle for?

She rolled her eyes at herself. Curse her own curiosity. If something was wrong in town with Emma or any of them, she needed to know. Maybe assuming that the pair of them could separate was as silly as thinking that she could be angry and separate herself from Regina. It never worked in the end. So finally she took a deep breath, pushed herself off the wall, straightened her coat and opened the door. It was best to just get this over with and leave. Go back to doing…whatever she was going to do.

Inside, he stopped pacing the moment that she came in the door. She looked up at him, but when she was faced with his eyes, she immediately looked back to the floor.

"You got my message," he breathed.

"Look…" she interrupted. "I-I told you that I-"

"Here-here!" he interrupted in return, grabbing her hand and forcing the small bottle into her palm. "This will save you from harm when you're crossing the town line." The town line? She stared baffled at him. He talked like she was going far away and they both knew it but…what was all this about?!

"Am I-am I going somewhere?" she questioned.

"Well that's up to you," he answered. Up to her? Crossing the town line? What was he saying? He wasn't going to try to get her back by promising to take her over the town line was he? He'd tried that once before! "You've always wanted to see the world, all of it is right out there…the other side of that town line," he said gesturing to an imaginary line miles away in the middle of the shop. Was he saying what she thought he was? "Go when you can! See all the wonders you've dreamt of and…when you've tasted it all maybe one day you'll come back!" he exclaimed. "Go today and have a life."

She'd begun to smile, but her stomach turned over at that last comment. Go today. Now? The middle of the night? Something didn't seem right. Did he really think she wouldn't see through it? "Is something wrong?" she asked.

"No!" he sighed suddenly lunging forward and wrapping his arms around her body before she could pull away. She responded. Her arms automatically went around him. This was why she tried so badly to keep her distance when they were fighting. They fit together so well it was intoxicating but this hug… "No, no, no, nothing's wrong! I just want you to…live out your dream."

He sounded genuine, tearful even, like this was tearing him apart because he knew it might be the last he ever saw of her if she left but it was this hug…this memory. The last time he hugged her like this was just before the Spell of Shattered Sight. He'd told her everything was fine then too, and she'd believed him and…

And this was exactly the reason that she should go. Instead of associating something as simple as a hug with something like love or even just kindness she automatically assumed he was lying to her, omitting some dark truth from her. She should be happy. He was giving her the freedom she not only wanted by needed. She should be happy.

"Okay, look!" their gentle rocking stopped suddenly and he practically pushed her away. It was shocking because in that one moment the closeness had allowed all her logical arguments to cease. She couldn't live without ever feeling that close to him again, without putting her arms around him, without feeling like she was the other half of a whole being.

"Here!" he reached around her and grabbed something that jingled. His keys? His copy of the car keys? "Y-you take the car, say good-bye to your father, and then start living."

Living. Living outside of Storybrooke. She was free to go and explore, to play, to see things that she'd never seen before. The Eifel tower, Big Ben, the Taj Mahal…she could go to New York City. She could see the city Neal talked about, walk the streets he'd walked, see his apartment, the pawn shop he'd worked in…that seemed like the greatest destination in the world to her. And…he was just going to give her a spell and the car and let her go see it? He was going to let her go be away from him and find herself, and he understood that after that she might come back to him and might not! He truly was changed. She hoped someday to say the same about herself. Because suddenly she believed, hoped, that if she could, then some day she would return, with a renewed sense of energy to fix whatever this was between them. He'd hurt her a lot. She'd hurt him a fair amount too. But what they'd had underneath all that hurt…it had been great. She'd nearly forgotten.

"I knew there was a hero in there," she whispered happily.

He looked back at her with tears in his eyes, and she knew that she needed to go again because this was a trip that she needed to take and if he started to cry she might not make it. Still, he stayed strong. Nodded his head and whispered "good-bye Belle."

"Yeah…" she whispered back. Good-bye? A few hours she'd have thought that was likely. But now…good-bye for a while certainly. Good-bye forever? Somehow she doubted that. At the door suddenly she didn't feel the need to avoid his gaze anymore and looked back at him, just to make sure things were alright, to make sure he wouldn't break down and tell her not to go and that something was wrong. But he only nodded and made it easy for her to give him a last smile and leave happily. This was a good thing. She hoped it was a good thing.

* * *

 **Sigh...I did what I could with the scene. I liked the basic idea behind it, but it killed me that it was so short, not to mention that this scene made Belle so gullible that it bugged the crap out of me. So...I don't know what more I could say about it. I can't do much the the seen stuff. The end.**

 **Big thank yous to Fox24, Grace5231973, TracyJean, Ladybugsmomma, and Teresa Martin, for the reviews. Only one of you saw the key to the end of the storyline. I like that. It makes me think that there might actually be some surprise and amazement at the end of this! Which is fast approaching! It's so hard to believe! There is a bit of a filler chapter up next, my favorite chapter follows (and I'm SO excited), and then two chapters later we're on to the last chapter. Peace and Happy Reading!**


	56. The Final Countdown

When she stepped outside of the shop, she felt like the world was spinning. Or maybe it was just her head spinning. The car keys were in her hand along with a potion that...what did it do exactly?

Quickly she uncorked the bottle and took a sniff to confirm; apricots and garlic. It was unexpected. She'd expected that it would be an anti-transfiguration potion, similar to the powder he'd had but this was made of different ingredients. If she remembered correctly, and she'd learned that she usually did, apricots were a sign of a spell designed to repel Dark Magic. If this was mixed right, and because it was Rumpelstiltskin she knew it was, then a simple swallow would keep Emma's transformation spell, and the Dark Ones themselves for that matter, from touching or using magic on her. She could go over the town line, safe from the transfiguration spell Emma had set around the town. She could leave. She could leave tomorrow. She could leave tonight. She could leave now.

Any time she wanted to go, she could go.

Did she want to go? Did she really want to leave?

Yes. Yes, of course, she did! What was she thinking, over thinking about an offer like this?! Of course she wanted to go! It was the answer to all her problems! She wouldn't have to stay fenced in in this town, she wouldn't have to work across the street or find a new place to live. She could travel. She could go out and see the world and then…

And then…

And then what? She was going to go out into the world and then come back?

What did it matter what she did when she was done? For once Rumple seemed to understand better than she did. She needed to get away, to discover who she was…he was giving her leave to do that. No matter what the consequences were. She would be a fool not to take him up on the opportunity.

"Rapunzel!" she called when she finally slammed back into the library. "Rapunzel!" she ran up the stairs, nearly tripping over a stair at the top but when the door opened up before her, she beamed even as Rapunzel looked panicked.

"What is it? What happened? What did he do?"

"Everything!" she breathed as she smiled. "Everything!" Rapunzel helped her back onto the couch and she repeated nearly word for word exactly what had happened and slowly Rapunzel's look of concern faded into a smile.

"This is great!" she exclaimed. "When are you going to go?"

She ran a hand nervously through her hair as she arrived at the same question that she'd asked herself not an hour ago. "I don't know…I suppose I can go anytime."

"Go tonight!" Rapunzel urged quickly. She didn't rebel at the thought of leaving right away but at the same time it just seemed so…sudden! This wasn't a small trip that she was thinking about taking this was going to be a long journey. It required preparation and forethought…didn't it?

"You think I should?"

Rapunzel nodded. "Why not?" she asked as if it was silly. "What are you waiting around here for? You said yourself that you wanted to get away and that you were afraid he'd wear you down if you were too close. Don't be close! We can get you packed up in an hour and by the time the sun comes up you can be hundreds of miles from here! You can be in this New York City place! You can get a room at a nice Bed and Breakfast and take as long as you need to plan where you go from there."

New York City. She could find Neal's apartment. She could see what he'd seen, live where he'd lived…that would be worth ten trips around the world. The idea of leaving right away, yes it was terrifying. But everything else that Rapunzel mentioned was right. Ensuring that she was hours away meant that she wouldn't run back to him was a smart thing to do. Going to see Neal, to see his life and his world, was comforting. Leaving within just an hour…no, there was something besides packing that Rumple had told her to do, that she had to do if she was going away without knowing when she was coming back.

"I have to call my father," she breathed. "Tell him I love him, say good-bye…"

"Then do it," Rapunzel insisted. "Call your father, tell him to meet you by the car in an hour, we'll go get you packed and on your way!"

Was it really all that simple? It could be. If she didn't complicate things and let her heart hold her back, it could be that simple. And Rapunzel was right, she was exhausted from lack of sleep but by this time tomorrow morning she could check into a hotel in New York City, sleep for three days, and then start to find Neal's apartment.

That was exactly what she was going to do. She nodded in agreement with Rapunzel. The girl went into the kitchen to wash dishes as she made the call to her father. He was confused. It was nearly the middle of the night, and he was worried something was wrong. He could have sworn when he looked out the window of his home he saw someone dressed in black. She put the news out of her mind. Emma was no longer a threat. And Killian…

She never did find out what happened to him. But if the others hadn't called her yet then there was no need to complicate things by involving herself. Besides, Rumple was here. There was a time before she'd learned about magic that Rumple had been the one to help them. It was only after he'd gone that she'd become "the new Rumpelstiltskin" as Regina called her. The sad truth was that they were interchangeable. If they needed anything, Rumple could help them. It would be good for him to see what he could do without his magic. And maybe not knowing what was going on was a good thing for her. If she knew she might be tempted to stay and the more she thought about this sudden change of plans the more she came to accept that this was what needed to happen. She needed to go.

She made arrangments to meet her father outside the shop in an hour, it was then that she would explain, in person, because over the phone was not nearly fair enough. Then she and Rapunzel locked up the library and walked down the street. Rapunzel blanched when she turned toward the diner. "We're not going to the house?" she questioned.

She took a deep breath and looked down the black road, the road that led home. But she shook her head. She'd known that she didn't want to go there without ever really thinking about it. She loved that house and yes a fair number of her things were there, but she figured that if she went back there, her mind might be changed. And fortunately, it wasn't necessary.

"Not today," she breathed. "Maybe when I come back, but for now I have clothes at Granny's…that'll get me far enough and then from there I guess I'll just…I'll do what I can."

Rapunzel nodded then stepped forward threaded her arm through her own as they walked and whispered: "just think of the shopping trips you'll get to have."

She smiled and suddenly recalled another hobby she hadn't practiced for…she could hardly remember how long. "I like to design clothes," she breathed. "I like to make my own. Maybe I'll make something for myself."

"Yeah…that sounds like a good idea."

The pair of them spent the unnecessary hour explaining to Granny what was going on, packing what little she had in her room, and hugging her so tight she wasn't sure she could breathe. Granny had tears in her eyes, actual tears that she wasn't sure she'd ever seen in her face before. She said very little, nothing actually resembling a good-bye. When the time came, and she wanted to pay the bill, Granny refused. She simply told her that her bill was taken care of, put a hand against her cheek in a touchingly tender gesture, then reached forward, kissed her cheek, and told her to drive safe.

She glanced at Rapunzel who stood over by the window. One down, one to go, and then-

Without warning the lights in the diner began to flicker and even went completely out once as the ground moved beneath her feet and-

And then everything was normal again. Granny was clutching a wall to hold herself up, she was working on getting herself back up again and Rapunzel…she was staring out the window at something, something that she figured was about to alter her plans. "What the…"

"Rapunzel?" she questioned grabbing her bag and going to her. "What was it? What happened? What did you see?"

"I think…I think it was a tornado!" she blanched. A tornado? A tornado that struck that fast it didn't seem… "It was over toward the library!" she exclaimed as though she'd just remembered before taking off like a rocket toward the exit. She hollered a good-bye to Granny over her shoulder as she followed and looked around outside but the streets looked normal. Almost normal, save for the people that were also getting their footing on them.

"It was a tornado," Rapunzel breathed. "I know it was! I saw it. It was…green…"

She followed Rapunzel's gaze up to the clock tower. It was broken, completely destroyed, just like when Zelena and Regina had battled and…Zelena.

Before her eyes, a shadow up in the dark tower moved, and glass, hands, numbers, and all, suddenly reappeared right where they belonged as the figure magically repaired the clock and disappeared in a haze of darkness. Well…one less thing for her to worry about then.

"A green tornado?" she questioned again. Rapunzel nodded her head. "That's good news."

"Good news? How?"

"It means this town doesn't have to worry about Zelena ever again," she assured her. It meant Rumple would never have to worry about her again either. It was a good thing.

Together the pair walked down the street to the pawn shop, the place that the car was parked. She held her breath as she arrived and set her bag down on the curb. She couldn't help herself, she glanced inside the shop. The urge to enter, to go inside and wrap her arms around him one more time and thank him, it was almost overwhelming. It was overwhelming. She took a breath and a step forward and-

"Okay!" Rapunzel insisted stepping forward and barring her entrance. She grabbed her hand and spun her around before opening the passenger side door. "Bag!" she stated settling the bag inside on the floor. "Potion!" She set it inside the pocket of her pink jacket. "And…whatever this is…" she said looking the dreamcatcher over and putting it in the front seat before slamming the door.

"Dreamcatcher," she informed her. "Probably won't do me much good where I'm going…"

"Well…you never know right?"

"And you'll remember to return the books in the library to Rumple, and-"

"And keep the back room of magic books locked...I remember."

"One last thing then," she breathed. She walked back to the trunk, where she'd already safely stashed the cardboard box Rapunzel had first given her when she'd gotten back from Camelot. It was still full of clothes, but there was something else sitting on top of it now, something she'd known she couldn't take with her beyond the walls of Storybrooke. It was magic. It wouldn't servive.

She plucked the foggy glass belljar out of the box, walked back over to Rapunzel, and handed it over to her. "Take care of this for me?" she questioned with a lump in her throat.

Rapunzel looked her over with wide surprised eyes before she took it. "Your rose! Are you sure-"

"Positive," she interrupted. "The Blue Fairy created it from nothing, which means it's not even really a rose or glass, just magic. It'll disappear outside of Storybrooke and...and it means too much for me to let that happen."

Rapunzel was quiet for a minute a she looked it over, then cautiously looked back at her, shaking her head. "You know I can't make it work."

She nodded. "He'll be fine," she assured Rapunzel and herself. "Keep it safe?"

Slowly, Rapunzel nodded in agreement. "Alright…" she breathed before facing her again looking nearly put together once more. "Be safe, call me every step of the way to tell me what it's like, and come back when _you_ are ready."

She felt her chin wobble and reached forward quickly to hug the girl. "Thank you for all your help."

"It's not a problem," she whispered back.

"I suppose you're going to have to call yourself the librarian now."

Rapunzel chuckled against her and pulled away. "Yeah…yeah, I guess I can. But…it'll be waiting for you. Whenever you get back we'll be here. And we'll be well taken care of until you do. all of us, I promise," she muttered looking between the library and the belljar.

"And you always keep your word."

She beamed. "Yeah, I do. Unless Flynn and I decide to run off and get married…then all bets are off." The pair of them laughed at her only caveat, and she opened her mouth to tell her that if that ever happened she had her blessing only the sound of a footstep behind her distracted her.

"Belle?" she turned and nearly broke into tears at the sight of her father standing there on the corner. One more good-bye. A difficult one. This might be harder than she thought. She felt a squeeze of her hand and glanced over at Rapunzel who smiled at her and mouthed the word "bye" before stepping back across the street to the library. And then it was simply her and her father. "Are you going somewhere?" he asked looking at the suitcase still standing on the curb.

She cleared her throat and stepped forward to open the trunk. "I am," she stated. "Rumple he um…he knows I need some space. He gave me a potion so I can cross the town line and…it's for the best. Right?"

"Leave Storybrooke?!" her father blanched.

She felt her face fall. Maybe he wouldn't-

"I would have left years ago if it was possible," he inserted suddenly reaching forward to grab her bag. "Belle if you have this opportunity you must go! Now! You mustn't waste another second!" He put her final bag in the trunk, looked her over, and she felt as though she'd just lost her breath. Really it was that easy? He wanted her to go? Suddenly he stepped up and enveloped her in a hug that was all consuming. She hadn't had a hug like this since she was little. Was that a good sign?

"You want me to go?"

"Oh Belle," he whispered in her ear. "I want you to do what makes you happy and keeps you safe. If you have this opportunity, you must take it." He let her go then, looked her over and stepped back. "You have to go."

The tone of his voice was more serious than she would have ever expected. It was fearful almost. She didn't understand it. Was he afraid that he'd lose her if he refuted her? That if he didn't agree with this it was going to push her away from him?

Did it matter? She was ready to go. He was pushing her to go. This should have been a no-brainer. She cast her eyes over her father's shoulder into Rumple's shop. When she felt the urge to go inside and give what she knew should be her final good-bye, she knew that she shouldn't waste time. "I love you, Papa," she whispered before walking over to the driver's side door.

"I love you too Belle. Be safe!" His words cut out as she slammed the car door, turned the key in her palm, then took a breath, and stepped on the gas.

It was odd, in the rearview mirror, her father waved at her, then turned his wrist over as if to check the time…

* * *

 **Ok, yeah, it's filler. You know it, I know it, I'm not going to try to deny it. But I like to think that this is a chapter of necessary filler. It always did confuse me that without much argument Belle wasn't just gung-ho to leave, but she was ready to do it that very night! No one I know plans a trip like that! I've been dreaming my whole life of a trip to Germany, but if someone handed me the tickets at 9:00 at night I wouldn't pick up and take the next flight! It seemed hasty. So I had to give her a few little nudges in that direction. Let's see...oh, I also had to get Zelena out of town with this chapter, find a place for the rose that has been forgotten about, and of course come up with a reason why Belle was conveniently the only main character in Storybrooke not to be marked by one of the Dark Ones. Did anyone else think that was odd? I did. So I had a lot of fun coming up with a way to keep them away from her. In case you missed it, the spell Rumple gave her repels Dark Magic, ergo it keeps them away from her and probably Rapunzel since she's her new bestie. Not a great excuse, but at least I came up with something.**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, TracyJean, Fox24, Curly J, Carlyle23, Teresa Martin, Ladybugsmomma, and Matty, for the reviews you left me! Ya'll...I am so excited for the next chapter. So excited I could burst! I've been saying since way back in MT that it's my favorite chapter of the 5A fictions, and we've finally made it! It's a Belle/Neal chapter and let's just say it's the moment that everything comes together in a perfect moment of unity, harmony, emotion, answers, and filled in plot holes. I'm so excited and I hope you are too! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	57. One Last Good-Bye

She knew it was unsafe, knew that it was most certainly not the smartest thing in the world to do, but she sped through the streets without a care in the world for speed limit with one goal in mind: get far away as fast as possible. It was fear. It was nothing but fear. The fear that she'd turn around, the fear that she'd cross the town line and become a tree, the fear that she really didn't know what she was leaving behind. This was an impulse. An unplanned impulse that she was doing her best to follow through with as fast as possible so that she wouldn't over think it. With any luck by the time she came to her senses and realized just how crazy all this was she'd be hours away and realize there was no point in turning back.

The world blurred and darkened outside of her window. Shops and businesses and the harbor gave way to houses; houses gave way to trees and a lone long black road. Her phone rang once, and she did pick it up to see who it was but decided against answering when she saw it was Granny. The woman knew that she was leaving town, she wouldn't be surprised if was calling to try and stop her. When she rounded the bend that she knew would take her beyond the town line, it was nearly midnight, and she reached into her pocket for the repellant potion that Rumpelstiltskin had given her. Yes, it had the ability to repel all darkness on its own, and she'd probably be safe with it just sitting in her pocket…but when she saw the orange line approach and the tree that had once been Dopey in the distance she realized she didn't want to take any chances. The potion could repel all on it's own, but it could also be swallowed, and that was exactly what she did. Without taking her foot off the accelerator she pushed the cork off with her thumb, promising to find where it landed when she stopped, turned her nose up at the smell and downed the foul substance as fast as she could. There was nothing that could compare to the taste of it. Thick and sugary and sour all at once…

She gripped the steering wheel so hard her knuckles turned white in the moonlight and held her breath. The town line was only a second or two away. She didn't care what the potion tasted like. So long as it got her over the town line and allowed her to get to New York as a person and not as tree…like Merlin.

The moment she'd passed over the line she'd had the thought. A memory.

She hit the brakes faster than she should have and for a moment her body tingled and her heart jumped into her throat as the car skid dangerously along the road before coming to a very sloppy diagonal stop in the middle, blocking both lanes.

When it was over she waited for a breath, then two, then felt recognition curl into her mind as she looked around her. Yes. The town line was in the rearview mirror. No. She wasn't a tree. And yes…she remembered Merlin as a tree. But she wasn't sure why...

She turned off the car and felt the top of her head as if she expected to find a bump, something to prove she was crazy but…no. She was fine. She was alive, human, perhaps a little shaken, but she remembered. Everything!

She remembered Camelot. She remembered walking into the castle and the dance they'd had that night, she remembered watching petals fall one by one from her rose and completing that translation of Merlin's diaries as she and Regina had come to an understanding yet again. Merlin! She remembered Merlin. She remembered how he'd been a tree and Emma rescuing him so that he could lift the spell on David and Mary Margaret. She remembered rescuing Lancelot and…so much more.

She remembered the conversations. She remembered talking with Merida. She remembered helping her too but mostly she remembered how they'd talked. About her. About Rumple. Her "fella" she'd called him. She could remember telling her that she wasn't going to give up on him, that she wasn't going to stop until she came to a decision on the pair of them. Them. Together. The two of them as one.

And that wasn't the only conversation she'd had about Rumple. Merlin had said that she had a choice to make, a difficult one. He'd told her they were tied together and the more and more that she'd asked him to tell her what choice that she should make it seemed like he'd given her less and less of an answer. Until the last time, they'd spoken; the last time she'd seen him in the diner. That must have been right before Hook murdered him.

 _"You should get back to your beast Belle,"_ Merlin had suggested before she left him alone. _Merlin inserted quickly. "It's where you belong."_

He'd answered her flat out then, and she hadn't even been looking for an answer. But his reasoning…it had been brilliant and logical and perfect. _"You can't fix something if you don't work on it, it'll just remain broken forever, and that could be deadly for anyone who touches it. The teacup may always have chips, but at least it'll still useable."_

Oh, she remembered how well that reasoning had worked. She could remember sitting in the room with the baby and Roland, just before the curse must have struck or Hook or Emma or whoever was responsible had put them under a sleeping spell. She remembered looking at her rose until she promised that she was going to go back and try to sort things out and make them right together.

And yet here she was. Across the town line. New York City ahead of her, a curse and Rumpelstiltskin behind her.

So how was it that she got her memories back if the curse was still-

As she looked around, she spied the dreamcatcher sitting on the seat next to her where Rapunzel had put it and understood. Her memories had been bound to it by magic. Once she'd crossed the town line, a place that magic didn't exist, the magic hadn't existed and the memories had nowhere left to go but back in her head, the place that they'd belonged.

Belonging… _"You should get back to your beast Belle…it's where you belong."_

Merlin's words made tears come to her eyes. She told herself that she couldn't blame herself for being out here, for making the decisions that she had. Until about twelve seconds ago all that had been locked away and hidden from her. Their relationship would have been another victim of Emma's curse. The Dark One.

But she couldn't escape the blame that she felt for not turning the car around this very moment and going back into town. She was shaking as she looked at the long road ahead of her. It would be so simple. It would be so easy to keep driving and leave the town and Rumpelstiltskin and all his lies behind. He didn't know she'd made those promises. No one did. There was no one holding her to them now. All she had to do was drive, and she could begin fresh, start a new life somewhere, and not have to risk getting hurt again if she went back.

But she didn't drive forward. And she didn't turn around. The minutes ticked by, passed midnight, and she did the only thing she could. Breathe. And then cry. All this time wondering what she wanted and what she needed. Now she knew. She knew because she now had weeks of memories to build off. She wanted her husband back. Not the Dark One. She wanted to go back to the time that she believed he could be a hero like she'd read about in her books. She needed him to be that. She needed to give them a fair chance. If she had both those things, then they could start over again.

It wasn't an if anymore. What he'd said at the well was true. He was a hero, and his heart was pure now, she could work with that. She should be turning around and speeding toward home! So why wasn't she?! Why wouldn't her feet move, why couldn't she get her body to do what her heart told her to!

She sniffled as she put her hands on the steering wheel and dropped her forehead against them. She was so confused!

"Neal!" she imagined herself crying out to summon him as tears cascaded down her face.

"Funny place to meet, outside Storybooke, literally in the middle of the street. You ever think to pull over to the side? Maybe try not to get yourself pulled over?"

She shook her head at his attempt at humor because to her it wasn't funny. If she turned the car on with the intention to pull forward she might keep going and she didn't want to do that. So why didn't she just turn around?!

"I know what I want," she cried as she glanced over and saw him sitting next to her. She remembered the conversations that she'd had with him in Camelot, how they had come to some really big conclusions…she just hadn't remembered until now. "I know what I need to do."

"So…why aren't you doing it?"

She took a few deep breaths, anything to stave off the thick tears that were pooling in her eyes and blurring her vision. Odd. They were there because she'd never seen so clearly as she did now. "I'm afraid," she admitted with a small sob.

Neal nodded in understanding as tears dripped over her eyes and down her cheeks. She sniffled all she could, but didn't stop them. This felt just as necessary as the tears she'd shed for Neal hours ago had.

"So if you're afraid…" Neal drawled after a few minutes, "that makes this the equivalent of running away."

She thought about it for a moment. She'd never run away from anything in her life, not without good reason, for a bear or a homicidal Snow Queen. But, yes…this felt a lot like running away. More than either of those times ever had.

"What are you running from?" Neal pushed in her silence.

She searched her emotions, racked her brain, but when she came up with more than one answer, she realized that all of them were right. There was a lot to be afraid of. "I'm scared…I'm scared of falling in love again, of losing someone I love. I'm afraid of loving someone more than they love me. I'm afraid of getting hurt again. And Neal, I'm afraid…" her chest rattled as she took another deep breath and looked over at him. "I'm so afraid of waking up one morning and not having you in my head."

She understood now, where he'd been when she'd dated Will and been happily married, why he said that he only turned up when she needed him. It was because it was true. She hadn't needed him to help her figure out who she was then, what she wanted. She'd had normal healthy relationships instead of a voice in her head taking on the form of her dead step-son. It wasn't real, but it felt real. And she missed him so much. If she went back, started another relationship, a serious one…it couldn't include him, she'd seen that clearly in Camelot just before they'd gone back, and saying good-bye to Neal…it was so much harder than just turning the car around. She missed him so much.

"You know…I don't think fear gives way to courage," Neal stated looking at his hands. "I mean…I only know what you know, but I think courage only comes when you face your fear. If you do the brave thing-"

"And let bravery follow," she finished. He knew what she knew. Because he was her. Because he wasn't real. But that didn't stop him from being safe and easy to talk to.

"Didn't we already agree in Camelot that being safe and easy to talk to was part of the problem?" he questioned, responding to her thoughts, further destroying the illusion.

She nodded. "We agreed I needed to talk to him. Not you, not…not me. Things aren't going to get better if you are the only stable relationship I have. I left town because…because I want to be the person I was a year ago with you and your father, brave…and trusting. I'm not going to find that in New York am I?"

Neal shook his head. "Probably not. Running away rarely results in bravery."

"And I can't learn to trust him again by putting distance between us and trusting new faces."

Neal nodded. "Also true. Learning to trust others doesn't mean you'll learn to trust the one that broke your trust in the first place."

She felt another wave of tears threaten to break through but she pushed them away and heard Merlin's voice in her head once more. _"I'm saying that our decisions make us who we are, good and bad. But if you abandon all hope before you've made the decision…then I suppose you'll never know the riddle's outcome will you?"_

Merlin had told her that, one night by the well when he'd told her that she had a choice to make. She hadn't understood it then, or hadn't wanted to. Now the "riddle" and it's answer all seemed perfectly clear.

"This is it, isn't it," she cried. "This is how I get myself back, become who I once was. By being brave and turning around, by trusting when no trust has been earned, by staying by his side and working on us instead of me."

Beside her Neal nodded. "Well…sounds like you've finally got your answer then."

She nearly burst into tears again. Because if she had her answer, if she had her decision, then that meant she was going to be leaving something behind on this road.

"I can't let you come back with me, can I?"

Neal shook his head and she felt two betraying tears slide down her cheeks. "No. It…it looks like this is my stop."

"And it has to be that way…doesn't it?"

"Yeah…but I know what you know and right now I know that you'll be just fine without me. At least for now."

"I suppose the only way I'll know is if I try."

He nodded and when he finally turned to face her she saw the tears in his eyes too. "I should have listened when you told me not to open that vault," he choked out almost sadly.

She gave an odd sort of chuckle at that thought. "You would bring that up now of all times," she replied managing a smile.

"Seemed like a good way to go, writing past wrongs, admitting prior stupidness and all that…seems to be going around lately." She laughed at his response, but stopped the moment that she felt her hand in his. He squeezed it and she wasn't sure who reached first but the next moment she was in his arms, enveloped in a hug, the kind that he's so rarely given in life unless she'd been truly grieving. It was appropriate, she realized.

"You know I love you right…" he whispered into her shoulder. "I never told you when I was alive but-"

"You know what I know," she finished.

"Exactly."

"I love you too Neal…Bae," she whispered back before she pulled away and looked him over one last time. It was the goodbye, the promises, and final words she'd never had. Sad as it was, it felt freeing. "I'm going to tell him about you this time around, everything I can remember whether it hurts or not. For a long time you were the most important person in the world to me…I won't forget that. Never."

"I know." And with that he leaned forward and kissed her cheek. "I better go…you have somewhere to be."

She nodded as he pulled away and retreated to the door. It was probably for the best. "And don't forget!" he quickly added over his shoulder with his hand on the handle. "You promised me veto power on baby names. Just promise me you won't choose anything too wimpy. Nothing that'll get the kid beat up on the playground, alright…"

Even through her tears she felt herself break into a smile as she chuckled softly. "Sure Neal…I promise."

"Good," he smiled. He took one last look at her, nodded a good-bye, then opened the car door, got out, and-

The sound of the car door slamming forced her eyes open and her head up out of the steering wheel. She was alone on the road out of Storybrooke. Her eyes were scratchy and puffy, her cheeks felt crusty, and, according to the clock, hours had passed in what felt like minutes. She must have fallen asleep again. Understandable considering everything that had happened to her lately but then why had she woken up. Everything was quiet and-

Everything was not quiet. It wasn't the sound of a car door that woke her up, it was the shrill tone of her cell phone ringing.

* * *

 **Well? Well?! This is my favorite chapter of the fiction. Don't get me wrong; I like the last chapter too. But the Neal/Belle thing has been a relationship all my own, one that I've loved every step of the way and this last moment of saying good-bye...honestly, I cried like a baby when I wrote this chapter because I knew it had to happen here. And I threw in the little touch of her being asleep just to give you the opportunity for your own interpretation. She's never talked to Neal in her sleep before; she's always done it very consciously. So, did she call on Neal, have a talk and then fall asleep. Or did she fall asleep and then get a very special visit in a dream? Your choice. Obviously, the key I was referring to in previous chapters, the thing that makes her go back, was the dreamcatcher. Remember the last chapter of MT, the last conversation I had Belle have with Neal in that fiction? She does decide she needs to go back to Rumple and try again, but of course, then that memory and the character development was stolen. The decision was with her all the time, and she just didn't know it until she got her memories back. The show didn't show us whether or not Belle got them back. At this point, I think it would be silly if it was revealed that she didn't get them back, so I put the dreamcatcher in place. I was nervous for a while. There were set reports from this episode of a late night shooting between Belle and Emma, and I worried for a long time that the scene they shot was going to be Emma giving her the memories back. I tried to get a set report; no one had it. I worried it would be on deleted scenes and blow my story line, but it didn't happen and so now I can choose to say (so long as no one decides to say she doesn't have her memories in season six) that this is my version of what happened. She got her memories back, she retrieved the progress she made in Camelot, said goodbye to Neal, and ladies and gentlemen I submit this storyline to you as...character development! How'd I do?**

 **Thank you, Grace5231973, TracyJean, Fox24, Teresa Martin, Matty, and Ladybugsmomma, for the reviews on the last chapter. Ya'll are really very sweet! One last chapter to go. I can't believe that it's already time to start thinking about the new fictions! Granny calling will be semi-significant in the next fiction, but not so much that I can't tell you it's Granny calling because she's discovered Neal alone in the diner. Oh, look another plot hole I've closed. BOOM! One last chapter! On to the next! Peace and Happy Reading!**


	58. Ending With Everything

She knew it was stupid, but she spent the earliest and darkest hours of her morning just over the town line, laying on the hood of the car, in mourning for so many.

For Neal, certainly, for the relationship that she'd lost in him before it had ever been fully realized. She regretted that she'd never know how they could have been if he lived, but it was good to have these moments, this time, to really say goodbye and admit to herself that he was gone and there was nothing more to be done.

Neal was certainly the biggest reason that she was upset, the one she mourned for the most, but he wasn't the only one. It was Henry who called her and woken her from her sleep hours ago. Henry who had called her sounding not like himself and with dreadful news.

Hook hadn't just been defeated, Killian was dead. At first she hadn't been terribly shocked. She'd had a feeling that he might have been ever since she saw Rumple at the well with Excalibur, but it turned out Rumple wasn't the one to destroy him. He hadn't killed Hook, merely allowed him to take Excalibur for reasons no one understood, until last night.

There was a reason Rumple had sent her away, a reason he'd given her that potion, a reason her father had checked her wrist and then his own in the rearview mirror, both insisting she leave as soon as possible. They'd wanted to save her life.

Hook's plan, as Emma had suggested, wasn't revenge, it was to open a portal to the Underworld and flood the world with previous Dark Ones, allowing them to take over the world. Henry explained that they'd all been marked, on the inside of their wrists with a symbol of Charon. He told her that in order to stay in this world the Dark Ones had to trade places with humans. There had been dozens of them, each on collecting a soul to exchange with Charon at mid-night. But Hook had come through in a remarkable way. As they stood on the bank waiting to be dragged to the Underworld kicking and screaming, he'd had a change of mind, or rather a change of heart. He'd sacrificed himself, he'd absorbed the magic of all the Dark One's and had Emma run him through with the sword. He'd sacrificed himself in the way that Emma had meant to sacrifice Zelena…who had in fact been sent back to Oz by Regina earlier that night. And just like that, nearly as quickly as it had arrived, every terror she'd known for the last two months had evaporated into thin air.

Zelena was gone.

The millennia old Dark Curse was broken.

The dagger and Excalibur had melted away according to Henry.

Killian was dead.

Merlin was dead.

Neal was dead.

The citizens of Camelot had their memories back.

Everyone was in shock.

Emma was devastated.

And that was that. Everything could be wrapped up into a tidy bow that wasn't necessarily nice, but apparently did the trick. There were losses on both sides. So much so that she honestly couldn't say that anyone had really won. Except maybe for her.

It was a terribly selfish thing to think, probably a thought born more of Lacey than herself, but for once she felt as though she had come away luckier than she normally would have. She found the bottle that Rumple had put the repelling magic in the car and been so overwhelmed with her thoughts that she hoisted herself up on the hood of the car, leaned back on the windshield, and stared up at the stars.

He could have gone. According to Henry he'd been marked himself, probably long before he'd given her this potion, he could have used it for himself and run away. But he didn't. He could have told her what was going on and asked her to help. But he didn't. He'd lied. But this time the lie was for the better. In doing it he'd saved her life. Knowing she might not come back to him or properly leave if she'd known, knowing that he might not have a plan in time, knowing that he might die if he didn't use the potion himself…he'd sent her away. Essentially, he'd sacrificed himself for her. He'd chosen her over himself. She was chosen! And as the sun began to rise, erasing the bright stars from the sky and bathing the town line that had once seemed haunted with darkness in light...she smiled.

She'd left town. She'd spent at least eight hours outside of town, three of which she'd used to just stare at the stars. She'd practically dared herself to get in the car and drive to New York City. But she didn't. Because when she looked at the sky outside of Storybrooke, she realized that it was exactly the same as inside Storybrooke, but there was no one next to her to point the simalrities out to. She still wanted to see the world, but she didn't want to do it alone. She wanted company. She wanted her husband back.

When the stars finally faded and morning came she got off the top of the car and folded herself back inside. She looked down the road one last time, then started the car and turned around. She was still scared, just like she'd been scared when she told him that she would go with him decades ago. But Neal-she had been right. This was the brave thing, this was trust, this was getting herself back in a way that New York City couldn't provide. It was supposed to be terrifying.

"For better or worse...right Neal?" she question. She didn't expect his answer.

She went home first, assuming that in the aftermath that was where she could find him. But the house was silent and she shook her head at how wrong she'd been. This was never the place he called home unless she was there. If he was upset at her departure, living in shock as Henry said the others were, then there was only one place that he could be.

"Pawn shop," she muttered gathering her keys and leaving the house yet again. She left her suitcase in the foyer though. It was alright. She had a feeling she'd be back soon enough to unpack.

Things in town looked no different than when she'd left. Granny's was open for breakfast, people were walking to work, she passed a school bus picking up children…the world went on, despite the loss of their friends and what everyone had lived through. Now it was her turn. She parked next to the shop and only just barely remembered to turn the car off before getting out and running inside. She couldn't help it. After hours of quiet and some not so quiet meditation and thinking she was at the end of her rope. She was ready. No more thinking, just doing. Trusting. Bravery. "Do the brave thing and bravery will come. Do the brave thing and bravery will come. Do the brave thing-"

"Get out we're closed!" she heard him call from the back of the room, silencing her breathy murmurs. The back room of the shop. Naturally. Without her he would prefer to live in this shop.

"Rumple!" she called making her way back to him. She heard a shuffle in the back of the store and when she pushed back the curtain she saw him standing there by a table, a bottle of whiskey on the table. It was touching. Hook was dead, but he wasn't celebrating or mourning like the rest were. He was drowning in sorrow. There was no other reason that he'd be upset, other than the fact that she'd been gone.

"What are you doing here?" he questioned softly, moving around the table at the sight of her. He was confused, but the look on his face was happy. He was happy. Happy to see her again. What else was there?

"Henry called me," she admitted stepping up to him. "He-he told me everything. You lied to me! Again!" she accused, her voice cracking as she watched him for confirmation.

"Belle, I-"

She didn't wait to hear an explanation, she didn't wait for her mind to tell her to get in the car and drive away or take a step away from him or just how dangerous all this was. She simply lunged forward, pressed her mouth to his, wrapped her arms around his neck and finally experienced the bliss of her fearful mind silencing against him. His hands were on her back, naturally pulling her closer even as she pulled him closer. This was what she should have done nights ago, after he'd saved her from Merida. Maybe she could have saved themselves a lot of heartbreak if she had just listened to her heart instead of her mind. Yes, she knew that this was dangerous, but he'd changed and she…she'd changed too. They were going to need to make some changes in their relationship, she knew that now that her memories were back. But she wasn't going to make those changes cities and even countries away. This was how they made the changes. By sticking by each other through thick and thin. Two heroes together. Just like David and Mary Margaret. Just like she'd always dreamed.

Their kiss ended too soon. He hung on even as she felt her heels touch back down on the floor and the look in his eyes was still one of confusion and uncertainty. She must have looked the same. She didn't care. "For the first time you were truly selfless…" Things would never be certain. But he was right, he couldn't prove to her that she could trust him if she didn't give him the chance. This was that chance.

"You know I don't need to see the world to know what I want anymore. What I want is to be with you!" she whispered. She did want to see the world. But she wanted to do it with him by her side. It wouldn't be the same without him. She wouldn't be the same without him. And she didn't want him to be the same without her. She opened her mouth to tell him that, but no words came out. They'd exchanged enough words in the last few days. They'd exchanged enough words in the last few months! What she needed was to be in the place that didn't require words. The place that they didn't need any help, didn't need to be improved.

So instead of talking she launched herself toward him again, she let his arms catch her and come around her as they kissed so deeply she lost her balance. And after months of separation she allowed herself to take a step closer and finally melted into him.

* * *

 **Well, welcome to the end. I really hope that you enjoyed this story! The next story in the Moments series is Moments Discovered and Undiscovered it is 12th in the Moments Series and you can find it by simply heading over to my profile. It begins with the moment after Belle returns to Rumple in "Swan Song" and ends with the moment she places herself under a sleeping curse in "Ruby Slippers".**

 **Of course, if you liked what you read please review! I love getting those wonderful little gems in my inbox and communicating with the people reading on a personal level. And if you want to read more, please check out any of the other fictions** **in the Moments Series. For more information on the Moments Series, upcoming fictions, posting and publishing dates, or a reading order check out my profile. Peace and Happy Reading!**


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